THE  LIBRARY 

OF 

THE  UNIVERSITY 
OF  CALIFORNIA 

LOS  ANGELES 


200   MULBERRY  S7N.Y. 


THE   CHILDREN 


THE  GREAT  KING. 


A  STORY  OF  THE  CRIMEAN  WAR, 


BY  M.  H. 


What  poor  despised  company  of  travelers  are  these. 
That  walk  in  yonder  narrow  way,  along  that  rugged  maze  ? 
Ah,  these  are  of  a  royal  line,  all  children  of  a  King, 
Heirs  of  immortal  crowns  divine,  and  lo !  for  joy  they  sing. 


FOUR     ILLUSTRATIONS. 


PUBLISHED  BY  CARLTON  &  PORTER, 

SUNDAY-SCHOOL  UNION,  200  MUXBEEEY-STEEET. 


THE  CHILDREN 


OF 


CHAPTER  I. 

The  Lord  is  a  great  King. — PSA.  xlvii,  2. 

"  There  is  a  family  on  earth 

Whose  Father  fills  a  throne ; 
But,  though  a  seed  of  heavenly  birth, 

To  men  they're  little  known. 
But  'tis  the  King  who  reigns  above 

That  claims  them  for  his  own ; 
The  favored  objects  of  his  love, 

And  destined  to  a  throne." 

THE  spring  months  of  the  year  1854  were  al- 
ready passing  away  when  our  story  commences. 
Dark  lowered  the  clouds  in 'the  political  sky  of 
many  nations  of  the  earth  at  that  time;  wars  a  ad 
rumors  of  wars  prevailed  on  all  sides.  Russia  had 
begun  an  unjust  attack  on  Turkey,  the  provoking 
cause  of  the  war  being  the  contested  possession  of 


8  CHILDREN  OF  THE  GREAT  KING. 

the  holy  places  in  the  city  of  Jerusalem  by  the 
Greek  and  Latin  Churches,  in  which  contest  the 
Turks  had  taken  part  against  the  Russians. 
Strange,  indeed,  that  the  birthplace  and  sepulcher 
of  the  Prince  of  Peace  should  be  made  the  excuse 
for  all  the  horrors  attendant  on  war ! 

Not  unmoved  had  Britain's  sons  watched  the 
rise  and  progress  of  the  war.  Ever  averse  to  in- 
justice and  oppression,  they  saw  with  growing 
indignation  their  former  ally,  the  Emperor  of 
Russia,  carrying  on  such  an  unequal,  unjust  strife ; 
so,  after  finding  expostulation  vain,  they  resolved 
to  haste  to  the  rescue  of  the  oppressed  people, 
though  foreigners  and  of  an  adverse  faith.  Heavy 
fell  the  blow  on  many  a  British  home  when  the 
news  spread  that,  after  a  long  season  of  peaceful 
rest,  the  nation's  sword  was  once  more  to  be  un- 
sheathed, and  her  sons  to  go  forth,  strong  in  the 
power  of  the  Lord  of  hosts,  to  set  the  oppressed 
ones  free. 

Heartrending  partings  were  taking  place  over 
all  the  land;  high  and  low  alike — in  the  lordly 
dwellings  of  the  peer  and  the  noble  of  the  land, 
and  the  lowly  cottage  of  the  peasant  of  the  soil. 
Wives,  mothers,  sisters  were  shedding  burning 
tears  as  they  parted  fr-om  deai'ly-loved  ones  they 


CHILDREN   OF  THE   GREAT  KING.  9 

might  see  no  more  on  earth.  Alas !  how  many 
noble  ones  who  went  bravely,  eagerly  forth  at  the 
call  of  duty,  returned  no  more !  Winter  winds 
and  summer  sunshine  have  passed  over  their 
graves  in  the  far-distant  country  many  times  since 
then;  but  their  memory  lives  not  only  in  the 
hearts  of  those  who  loved  them,  but  in  the  remem- 
brance of  a  nation ;  and  their  names  stand  proudly 
out,  emblazoned  already  in  historic  records. 

Mingled,  indeed,  were  the  feelings  with  which 
Colonel  Percy  heard  the  news  that  his  regiment 
was  ordered  to  Varna,  from  thence  to  proceed  at 
further  orders  to  the  seat  of  war.  Soldier-like,  he 
was  ever  ready  at  the  call  of  queen  and  country 
for  active  service.  In  more  than  one  hard-fought 
battle  in  India  had  he  borne  a  conspicuous  part ; 
and  all  who  knew  him  declared  that  no  finer  spe- 
cimen of  a  brave,  noble-hearted  British  officer 
could  be  found  than  Colonel  Percy,  of  the  gallant 
regiment. 

Yet,  when  the  order  came,  his  thoughts  instantly 
turned  to  his  children,  and  for  the  first  time  he  felt 
that  the  obeying  it  cost  him  a  severe  pang.  Often 
before  had  he  been  separated  from  them,  but  then 
he  left  them  in  the  care  of  the  best  of  mothers. 
Now  their  home  must  be  with  comparative  stran- 


10  CHILDREN  OF  THE   GREAT  KING. 

gers,  for  the  gentle  mother  was  at  rest  in  the  land 
where  partings  are  no  more.  Only  two  short 
months  had  passed  since  father  and  children  had 
mourned  that  heavy  loss ;  and  with  the  sore  wound 
still  fresh,  the  "bitter  grief  yet  keen  as  ever,  no  won- 
der that  the  father,  brave  soldier  though  he  was, 
shrunk  both  for  himself  and  children  from  the  pain 
of  a  fresh,  perhaps  a  life-long  parting. 

But  not  long  were  such  feelings  allowed  to  sway 
his  well-disciplined  heart.  The  tenderest,  the  most 
allowable  of  emotions  must  yield  to  duty.  Faith- 
ful servant  of  an  earthly  government,  to  which  he 
had  sworn  fealty,  and  in  whose  defense,  and  in 
obedience  to  whose  commands,  he  was  ever  ready 
to  draw  the  sword,  and,  if  need  be,  die  on  the 
battle-field,  he  never  forgot  he  was  none  the  less  a 
servant  of  the  great  King  who  is  God  over  all ;  a 
good  soldier  of  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  willing  and 
ready  in  his  cause  to  endure  hardness,  and  uphold 
his  banner  against  all  foes. 

His  duty  once  plainly  seen,  and  aid  invoked 
where  it  is  never  invoked  in  vain,  all  arrangements 
were  quickly  made,  for  time  pressed;  and  the 
father  broke  the  news  as  gently  as  he  could  to  his 
two  motherless  children.  Most  he  feared  for  his 
gentle  girl,  his  loving  little  Ada. 


CHILDREN  OF  THE   GREAT   KING.  11 

There  they  stood,  the  brother  and  sister ;  Claude 
(a  fine  bold  boy,  with  the  brown  hair  and  flashing 
black  eyes  of  his  father)  with  his  arm  thrown  ca- 
ressingly round  his  sister,  who,  although  little 
more  than  a  year  his'junior,  looked  much  younger 
than  he,  her  fairy-like  figure  and  her  light  golden 
hair  falling  in  long  curls  round  her  almost  to  the 
waist,  giving  her  a  childlike  appearance,  which 
made  one  guess  her  younger  than  her  real  age, 
which  was  twelve  years. 

In  silence  the  children  listened  as  their  father 
spoke,  the  full  meaning  of  his  words  scarcely  fall- 
ing on  them  at  first ;  but  when  all  became  plain, 
when  they  realized  that  the  parting  was  at  hand, 
that  their  home  was  to  be  with  a  stranger  uncle 
in  Devonshire,  that  their  so  loved  father  was  going 
far  away  to  battle,  perhaps  to  death — then  it- 
seemed  as  if  a  dark  cloud  came  down  over  them, 
.and  shut  out  all  the  sunshine  from  their  lives. 
"  Mamma  dead,  and  papa  leaving  us,"  were  the 
first  words  Ada  uttered;  and,  throwing  herself 
into  her  father's  arms,  she  wept  the  unrestrained 
tears  of  childhood. 

Colonel  Percy  let  her  weep  on,  though  every 
tear  sent  a  pang  to  his  heart.  He  tried  not  to 
stop  her ;  he  thought  it  best  to  let  her  grief  have 


12  CHILDREN   OF  THE   GREAT   KING. 

relief  thus.  Quietly,  tenderly  he  held  her,  glanc- 
ing only  now  and  then  at  his  boy,  who  stood  with 
eyes  full  of  tears,  but  they  fell  not ;  a  strong  will 
kept  them  back,  the  flushed  cheek  and  the  firm-set 
lips  showing  how  great  was  the  effort. 

Suddenly  the  door  opened:  the  colonel  was 
required  in  another  room  on  pressing  business; 
he  put  down  his  child  and  went  at  once.  Claude 
went  up  to  his  sister,  and,  bending  over  her,  said, 
"  Ada,  darling  Ada,  don't  cry  so ;  papa  must  go, 
even  if  he  wished  ever  so  much  to  stay.  A  soldier 
would  never  draw  back  in  the  hour  of  danger; 
and,  Ada,  if  you  give  way  so  it  will  make  it 
harder  for  him  to  go,  and  you  would  not  like  that, 
dear?  Don't  you  remember  how  mamma  never 
cried  when  papa  went  away — never  before  him — 
only  after ;  yes,  after,  she  cried  bitterly ;  but  one 
day  she  told  me  that  she  kept  back  her  tears  for 
papa's  sake,  to  make  it  easier  for  him  to  go." 

At  these  words  Ada  sat  up  and  dried  her  tears. 
The  words  had  sunk  deep,  and,  sensitive  as  she 
was,  .she  possessed  a  resolute  strength  of  purpose 
which  would  develop  itself  quickly  when  called 
into  exercise.  Her  woman-nature  came  to  her  aid ; 
she  would  quiet  herself  for  her  father's  sake,  keep 
back  her  own  grief  to  lessen  his,  and  henceforth 


CHILDREN   OF  THE   GREAT   KING.  13 

shed  her  tears  in  secret,  seen  only  by  Him  to  whom 
all  places  are  open,  to  whom  darkness  and  light 
are  both  alike. 

Poor  little  Ada !  having  learned  such  a  lesson, 
thou  art  a  child  no  longer :  the  dawn  of  woman- 
hood is  breaking  around  thee ;  and,  through  sorer 
trials  and  more  bitter  grief,  thou  wilt  learn  to  suf- 
fer and  be  strong,  thy  earthly  reward  the  pure  joy 
of  unselfish  love ! 

The  evening  before  the  departure  had  come, 
father  and  children  sat  talking  together. 

"  Papa,"  said  Claude,  "  I  am  thirteen  and  more 
already ;  in  less  than  four  years  I  shall  be  in  the 
army,  and  fight  by  your  side.  O,  papa,  I  wish  I 
could  go  now ;  it  is  such  a  noble  thing  to  be  a 
soldier,  to  fight,  and  conquer  of  course;  brave 
soldiers  always  do  that;  and  'then  the  taking 
towns  by  storm,  and  feeling  all  the  time  we  are 
fighting  in  defense  of  our  country,  and  as  faithful 
subjects  of  our  government.  I  do  so  wish  I  were 
a  little  older,  that  I  could  be  a  soldier  now." 

Colonel  Percy  looked  at  the  boy's  bright,  ani- 
mated face,  and  felt  a  pleasure  in  the  thought  that 
no  coward  spirit  was  in  his  breast.  Faults  he  had 
— a  hasty  temper,  sometimes  an  impatience  of  re- 
proof; but  his  nature  was  brave,  truthful,  and 


14  CHILDREN   OF  THE   GREAT  KING. 

loving,  and  the  father  fondly  hoped  that,  by  the 
grace  of  God,  his  boy  was  being  led  into  the  right 
way,  and  was  seeking,  earnestly  seeking,  to  over- 
come his  faults.  "  A  soldier  now,  Claude !  Yes, 
you  may  be  so.  Indeed  I  trust  you  are  so,  and 
for  that  matter,  my  little  Ada  too." 

"How,  papa;  what  do  yon  mean?"  said  both 
children  in  a  breath. 

Colonel  Percy  paused  a  moment ;  then,  laying 
his  hand  on  his  boy's  shoulder,  said  gravely,  "  Yes, 
Claude,  a  good  soldier  of  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ, 
fighting  the  good  fight  of  faith." 

The  boy  pressed  closer  to  his  father.  "Papa, 
that  is  a  very  hard  battle  to  fight,  and  we  are  not 
sure  of  being  conquerors  there.  Often  and  often 
I  begin  the  fight  and  fall  before  the  enemy." 

"  How  about  the  armor,  Claude — the  shield  of 
faith,  the  sword  of  the  Spirit  ?  When  the  enemy 
comes,  do  you  use  these  against  him?  "What 
would  you  say  of  me  if  I  rushed  to  the  battle-field 
unarmed,  and  then  fell,  and  complained  that  my 
enemy  was  too  powerful  for  me  ?" 

"O,  papa,  you  would  never  be  so  foolish;  of 
course  you  would  go  prepared  to  fight." 

"  Well,  my  children,  never  go  out  to  the  daily 
battlefield  of  life  without  the  shield  of  faith,  which 


CHILDREN   OF  THE   GREAT  KING.  15 

is  kept  bright  by  prayer,  and  the  sword  of  the 
Spirit,  which  is  the  Word  of  God.  Have  that 
daily  hidden  in  your  heart ;  and  when  Satan 
tempts  you  to  do  wrong,  resist  him ;  answer  him 
as  the  Captain  of  our  salvation  did  when  he 
tempted  him :  *  It  is  written.' " 

Claude  sighed.  "  I  could  be  very  brave  in  an 
earthly  battle-field,  but  a  sad  coward,  I  fear,  in  the 
one  you  speak  of.  I  could  fight  against  flesh  and 
blood ;  but  I  so  often  fall  under  the  rulers  of  the 
darkness  ;  I  cannot  stand  against  the  wiles  of  the 
evil  one." 

Never  before  had  the  boy  spoken  so  openly  of 
his  feelings  to  his  father,  though  for  long  Colonel 
Percy  had  seen  the  struggle,  the  endeavor  to  do 
the  right  thing,  which  was  going  on  in  his  breast, 
and  for  which  he  had  thanked  God ;  now  it  seemed 
as  if  he  were  permitted  to  see  the  stumbling-block 
which  was  hindering  his  boy's  growth  in  grace, 
that  ere  he  left  him  he  might  be  enabled  to  remove 
it.  It  was  one  easily  seen — one,  alas,  which  many 
souls  have  fallen  against,  and  never  risen  again — 
self-righteousness ;  striving  to  overcome  the  great 
enemy  of  souls  in  our  own  strength,  instead  of  go- 
ing to  Him  who  will  impart  to  us  his  own. 

"  You  say  you  cannot  stand  against  the  wiles  of 


16  CHILDREN   OF  THE  GREAT   KING. 

the  evil  one,  Claude ;  no  more  you  can  in  your 
own  strength,  but  you  can  do  all  things  through 
Christ  strengthening  you.  You  can  through  him 
be  more  than  conqueror ;  you  can  be  strong  in  the 
Lord,  and  in  the  power  of  his  might.  Ask  for  that 
strength  daily,  and  you  will  be  enable'd  to  do  ex- 
ploits more  worthy  far  of  renown  than  any  earthly 
ones.  What  says  the  wise  king,  inspired  by  the 
Holy  Spirit  ?  '  He  that  is  slow  to  anger  is  better 
than  the  mighty,  and  he  that  ruleth  his  spirit  than 
he  that  taketh  a  city.' " 

Claude's  only  answer  was  a  pressure  of  his 
father's  hand,  and  a  whispered,  "  I  see  it,  papa ;  I 
see  what  I  should  do." 

Then  they  spoke  of  the  parting ;  Ada,  with  a 
full  heart,  not  saying  much,  only  keeping  very 
close  to  her  father's  side,  and  silently  taking  in  his 
every  word ;  long,  long  to  be  remembered  when 
her  home  was  with  strangers,  and  he  was  in  the 
far-off  battle-field. 

Ere  they  parted  Colonel  Percy  put  into  the 
hands  of  each  of  the  children  a  new  Bible.  "  Study 
it  well,"  he  said,  "  with  prayer ;  consult  it  in  all 
difficulties ;  follow  its  directions  as  minutely  as  a 
soldier  does  his  marching  orders.  It  is  God's  will, 
which  points  out  every  step  you  should  take  in  the 


CHILDREN  OF  THE   GREAT   KING.  17 

way  to  heaven,  and  warns  you  of  all  the  danger- 
ous places.  Remember  that  God  is  King  of  kings, 
and  a  king  demands  obedience  to  his  commands. 
Dear  children,  I  leave  you  to  his  care.  I  have  no 
greater  wish  for  you  than  that  you  should  be 
'  Children  of  the  Great  King,  the  King  of  glory.' " 
They  knelt  in  prayer,  and  sought  the  help  and 
guidance  of  God  the  Father,  God  the  Son,  and  God 
the  Holy  Ghost ;  and  after  a  long  loving  embrace 
the  children  were  sent  to  rest,  as  for  them  also  a 
long  journey  was  in  store  on  the  morrow. 


18  CHILDREN  OF  THE   GREAT  KING. 


CHAPTER  H. 

/ 

In  a  dream,  in  a  vision  of  the  night,  when  deep  sleep  falleth 
upon  men,  in  slumberings  upon  the  bed ;  then  God  openeth  the 
ears  of  men,  and  sealeth  their  instruction. — JOB  xxxiii,  15,  16. 

"  REST,"  thought  Ada,  and  smiled  at  the  thought ; 
"  no  rest  for  me  to-night,  when  to-morrow  is  the 
day  of  papa's  departure."  And  her  heart  throbbed 
and  the  burning  tears  fell  fast  enough  as  she  lay 
down  in  the  bed  over  which  a  mother  had  so  often 
bent  to  bless  her  and  give  the  sweet  good  night ; 
and  the  child  longed  to  know  if  the  spirit  of 
her  mother  could  see  her  now,  could  know  that 
papa  was  going  away,  that  Claude  and  she 
were  henceforth  for  long,  so  long,  to  live  with 
strangers. 

Then  she  wondered  if  the  Great  King,  who  sees 
all  his  children,  and  loveth  and  careth  for  them, 
would  go  with  Claude  and  her  to  their  new  home, 
and  yet  accompany  and  protect  their  father  in  the 
dangers  of  a  foreign  land ;  and  something  seemed 
to  whisper,  "  Yes,  I  will.  Under  the  shadow  of 
my  wings  I  will  keep  you  all  till  you  meet  again. 


CHILDREN   OF  THE   GREAT   KING.  19 

I  will  never  leave  thee,  nor  forsake  thee."  And, 
with  the  words  sounding  in  her  ears,  she  fell 
asleep,  and  slept  the  quiet  sleep  of  childhood. 

Not  hers  yet  to  know  the  grief  which  gnaws  the 
heart,  and  banishes,  effectually  banishes,  sleep  from 
the  eyes.  Long,  long  may  it  be  ere  she  knows 
that  grief  experienced  only  by  those  of  riper  years, 
caused  often,  or  sorely  increased,  by  the  want  of 
that  childlike  confidence  in  the  sure  guidance  of 
the  Father  in  heaven. 

Quietly  the  child  slept  on,  yet  through  her 
sleep  her  father's  conversation  and  her  last  waking 
thoughts  mingled  with  her  dreams.  She  saw  be- 
fore her  a  steep  road,  tangled  with  thorns,  and  en- 
cumbered with  large  stones,  over  which  she  stum- 
bled as  she  tried  to  force  her  way  on  to  a  splendid 
house  she  saw  in  the  far  distance.  Over  the  gate 
which  led  to  it  shone  a  bright  light,  brighter  far 
than  the  sun ;  but  its  rays  only  cast  a  feeble  glim- 
mer on  the  path  where  the  child  walked,  by  reason 
of  the  thick  trees  which  met  overhead,  and  made 
all  so  dark  that,  save  when  now  and  then  they 
stood  more  apart,  she  could  not  even  catch  a 
glimpse  of  the  beautiful  house. 

Torn  with  the  thorns,  and  hurt  with  the  stones, 
she  sat  down  disconsolate,  when  suddenly  in  front 


20  CHILDREN  OF  THE  GREAT  KING. 

of  her  she  saw  a  glorious  figure,  clad  in  garments 
of  pure  white,  and  encircled  by  an  unearthly  light ; 
he  smiled  on  her,  and  taking  her  by  the  hand  he 
led  her  gently  on.  At  his  presence  the  thorns  dis- 
appeared ;  and  if  here  and  there  the  large  stones 
still  lay,  the  child  fell  not,  for  her  guide  carried 
her  over  them  all.  As  they  went  on,  now  and 
then  strange  wild-looking  creatures  came  out  of  the 
wood,  as  if  they  sought  to  carry  off  the  child ;  but 
the  moment  they  caught  sight  of  her  guide  they 
fled,  leaving  her  unmolested. 

Quite  close  she  kept  to  his  side,  though 
sometimes,  through  very  fear,  she  would  have 
dropped  her  grasp  of  his  hand;  but  at  such 
moments  she  felt  his  hold  of  her  was  a  strong 
one,  and  she  knew  that  in  that  fact  her  safety 
lay. 

Suddenly  she  saw  Claude  walking  with  them, 
held  also  firm  by  the  other  hand  of  the  guide. 
Timidly  Ada  raised  her  eyes  to  the  face  of  her 
conductor.  "Where  will  you  lead  us  to?"  she 
asked. 

Kindly  he  looked  at  her,  love  sparkling  in  his 
eyes.  "  Yonder,"  he  said,  pointing  out  the  shin- 
ing house  in  the  far  distance,  "to  the  palace  of  the 
Gftat  King." 


CHILDREN  OF  THE   GREAT  KING.  21 

"  O  how  good  ! "  exclaimed  both  children ; 
"  but  will  it  be  long  ere  we  reach  it  ?  " 

"  That  I  may  not  tell  you.  The  length  of  the 
journey  depends  on  the  will  of  the  King.  But 
fear  not ;  short  or  long,  under  my  guidance  you 
shall  reach  it  safe  at  last." 

"  And  you,"  said  Ada,  "  who  are  you  ?  " 

At  the  words  a  halo  of  glory  encircled  his  head, 
and  there,  written  in  letters  of  gold,  she  read  the 
words,  "  The  Son  of  the  Great  King,  the  Prince 
of  Peace." 

Something,  she  scarce  knew  what,  roused  her 
from  her  dream.  She  looked  up.  The  early  sum- 
mer sun  was  already  darting  its  rays  through  the 
opening  of  the  shutters,  telling  that  another  day 
was  begun.  Peace  seemed  to  rest  in  the  heart  of 
the  child;  it  was  as  if,  by.  visions  of  the  night,  the 
King  of  kings  had  commissioned  his  angels  to 
minister  comfort  to  the  motherless  girl. 

Little  she  knew  that  while  she  lay  wrapped  in 
slumber  a  father's  farewell  kiss  had  been  im- 
printed on  her  forehead,  a  father's  blessing  pro- 
nounced over  her  head,  and  that  already  Colonel 
Percy  was  on  his  way  to  the  post  of  duty.  He 
had  meant  to  awake  her,  as  he  had  done  Claude; 
but  her  calm,  peaceful  face,  though  on  the  long 


22  CHILDREN   OF  THE   GREAT  KING. 

lashes  still  hung  some  of  the  tears  shed  ere  she 
fell  asleep,  determined  him  to  spare  her  the  pain 
of  parting.  And  so  he  let  her  sleep  on,  and  left 
her — left  her  in  the  keeping  of  One  who  he  knew 
would  fail  her  not — the  safe  keeping  of  the  Great 
King. 


CHILDREN  OF  THE   GREAT  KING.  23 


CHAPTER  HI. 

"  Green  the  land  is  where  my  daily  steps  in  jocund  childhood 

played, 
Dimpled  close  with  hill  and  valley,  dappled  very  close  with 

shade ; 
Summer  snow  of  apple  blossoms  running  up  from  glade  to 


"  FRANCES,  don't  you  wish  they  would  come 
before  the  sun  sets  ?  it  will  be  so  dismal  for  them 
to  arrive  among  strangers  and  at  a  strange  place 
in  the  dark." 

The  words  were  spoken  by  a  pale,  delicate-like 
boy  of  nine  years  old,  with  large  dreamy  blue 
eyes,  who  stood  looking  out  of  the  window  in  a 
country  house  in  Devonshire,  eagerly  waiting  the 
appearance  of  some  expected  guests.  His  ques- 
tion was  addressed  to  a  girl  who  sat  near  him, 
ostensibly  occupied  with  a  book,  but  in  reality 
glancing  out  of  the  window  every  now  and  then 
as  eagerly  as  her  brother,  for  such  he  was,  though 
in  the  outward  appearance  of  the  two  there  was 
as  marked  a  difference  as  in  their  inward  disposi- 
tions. No  look  of  dreaminess  about  the  girl's 


24  CHILDREN    OF  THE   GREAT  KING. 

dark  eye  and  bold  countenance,  and  no  sentiment- 
ality in  either  the  words  or  tone  with  which  she 
answered  his  query. 

"Not  I,  Arthur.  I  don't  care  the  least  bit 
whether  it  is  light  or  dark  when  they  come,  nor 
indeed  whether  they  come  at  all  or  not.  I  don't 
believe  I  will  like  them  ;  stupid,  moping  things,  I 
dare  say.  I'm  sure  there  will  be  no  fun.  Now, 
Arthur,  don't  open  your  eyes  so  wide  at  me,  and 
look  so  horrified.  Of  course  I  remember  all  papa 
and  mamma  said  to  us  about  being  kind  to  them, 
and  all  that,  and  I  don't  wish  them  any  harm, 
only  'tis  horrid  to  be  put  out  of  one's  way, 
and—" 

"  O,  Frances ! "  said  the  boy,  "  how  you  do 
talk ;  and  you  know  they  have  no  home  of  their 
own  now.  Their  mother  is  dead,  and  their  papa 
away,  perhaps  to  battle.  I  do  hope  they  will 
come  while  that  beautiful  sun  is  pouring  its  light 
like  gold  through  those  green  leaves,  and  lighting 
up  those  trees  in  the  orchard.  Our  home  is  so 
lovely  to-night.  I  know  they  will  love  it  if  they 
see  it  so." 

The  child  stood  gazing  at  the  peaceful  scene 
before  him,  wrapped  in  delight.  His  sister  looked 
at  him,  half  in  disdain,  half  in  wonder.  Little  had 


CHILDREN  OF  THE   GREAT  KING.  25 

she  in  common  with  his  sensitive,  ardent  nature ; 
but  in  her  own  way  she  dearly  loved  her  brother, 
and  to  strangers  was  often  heard  to  boast  of 
Arthur's  smartness  and  his  old-world  remarks. 
The  window  was  open,  the  sweet  scent  of  blossom 
and  flowers  filled  the  room ;  the  rustle  of  leaves, 
fanned  by  the  gentle  breeze,  and  the  melodious 
caroling  of  the  birds,  were  for  long  the  only 
sounds  that  reached  the  ear. 

Presently,  however,  carriage- wheels  were  heard 
in  the  distance,  and  a  gentleman's  voice  called, 
"  Frances,  Arthur,  come  down ;  your  cousins  are 
coming." 

A  few  minutes  afterward  and  Claude  and  Ada 
Percy  received  a  warm  welcome  from  their  uncle 
and  aunt  and  young  cousins,  and  were  soon  com- 
fortably ensconced  in  their  new  home ;  and  ere  the 
twilight  had  changed  into  darkness,  wearied  out 
with  the  fatigues  of  the  day,  both  children  were 
fast  asleep,  watched  over  and  kept  from  evil  by 
the  Keeper  of  Israel,  who  slumbereth  not  nor 
sleepeth. 

While  they  rest  we  will  give  a  short  sketch  of 
the  people  among  whom  their"  life  was  for  a  while 
to  be  spent. 

Mr.    Willoughby,   the    eldest    brother   of  the 


26  CHILDREN  OF  THE  GREAT  KING. 

Percys'  dead  mother,  had  for  many  years  resided 
on  his  property  in  Devonshire,  farming  a  large 
portion  of  it  himself,  not  merely  nominally,  as 
many  gentlemen  farmers  do,  but  actively  and  in- 
cessantly directing  and  superintending  every- 
thing ;  acting,  in  short,  as  his  own  steward.  He 
was  a  man  of  no  ordinary  abilities,  and  of  no 
mean  scholarly  attainments.  His  natural  tastes 
were  refined,  and  his  little  Arthur's  intense  love 
of  the  beautiful,  as  well  as  his  feeling  heart  and 
gentle  manners,  were  all  inherited  from  his  father. 
In  many  respects  father  and  son  were  much  alike ; 
the  same  ardent  disposition,  the  same  deep  powers 
of  loving,  the  same  disposition  to  look  in  on  their 
own  minds  and  analyze  their  most  secret  thoughts. 
In  the  boy,  delicate  from  his  birth,  this  tendency 
was  beginning  to  be  a  hurtful  one,  leading  him  to 
dwell  too  much  on  himself,  and,  young  as  he  was, 
tempting  him  to  an  habitual  dreaminess.  Such  a 
tendency  had  in  Mr.  Willoughby's  case  been  early 
checked  by  a  public  school  education,  and  in  later 
years  by  constant  occupation;  and  a  strong 'will 
(stronger  than  Arthur  would  ever  have)  enabled 
him  to  overcome  any  inherent  inclination  to  mere 
idle  dreaming:  indeed  the  great  feature  of  his 
character  was  that  of  power.  All  in  his  house- 


CHILDREN   OF  THE   GREAT  KING.  27 

hold  and  neighborhood  acknowledged  it,  and 
almost  unconsciously  yielded  to  his  sway. 

The  only  one  who  rebelled  against  it  was  his 
eldest  child,  Frances,  a  bold,  reckless  girl  of  thir- 
teen, not  really  bad,  but  possessing  no  depth  of 
feeling.  She  was  utterly  careless  of  hurting  the 
feelings  of  others ;  and  after  having  spent  some 
months  with  two  cousins  older  than  herself,  who 
were  aiming  at  attaining  the  unenviable  character 
of  fast  young  ladies,  she  had  taken  to  imitate 
them,  and  by  adopting,  when  away  from  the  re- 
straint of  her  parents  or  governess,  their  manners 
and  phrases,  was  fast  making  herself  disliked  by 
all  who  knew  her. 

Mrs.  Willoughby  was  a  kind,  motherly  person, 
never  idle,  occupied  constantly  either  in  or  out  of 
doors ;  in  the  morning  hours  never  to  be  met 
without  a  large  bunch  of  keys  in  her  hands ;  in 
the  afternoon  busy  receiving  callers  or  returning 
visits ;  frequent  in  her  visits  to  the  nursery  to  see 
a  sweet  little  curly-headed  girl  of  two  years  old, 
little  Minnie,  the  pet  of  the  family,  and  to  the 
school-room  to  see  how  Frances  and  Arthur  were 
getting  on  with  their  governess,  Miss  Manley. 
An  active,  bustling  lady  was  Mrs.  "Willoughby, 
inclined  slightly  to  hold  her  husband's  poetical 


28  CHILDREN  OF  THE   GREAT  KINO. 

tastes  and  feelings  in  disdain,  and  entirely  igno- 
rant of  the  meaning  or  the  possibility  of  time 
hanging  heavy  on  the  hands  of  any  one.  From 
her  the  motherless  children  would  receive  all 
kindness  and  full  justice.  The  only  felt  want 
(and  O  what  a  want  it  is !)  would  be  a  lack  of 
sympathy ;  the  free  outpouring  of  their  hearts 
must  now  be  made  to  God  alone,  the  great  sym- 
pathizer. 


CHILDREN   OF  THE   GREAT   KING.  29 


CHAPTER  IV. 

Fear  thou  not ;  for  I  am  with  thee :  be  not  dismayed ;  for  I 
am  thy  God :  I  will  strengthen  thee  ;  yea,  I  will  help  thee ;  yea, 
I  will  uphold  thee  with  the  right  hand  of  my  righteousness. — 
ISA.  xli,  10. 

SOME  weeks  had  passed  since  the  Percys  ar- 
rived at  their  Devonshire  home,  and  they  were 
gradually  settling  down  into  the  quiet  routine  of 
their  new  life.  Claude,  as  had  been  arranged  by 
his  father,  boarded  with  a  clergyman  in  the  imme- 
diate neighborhood,  only  residing  in  his  uncle's 
house  from  Saturday  till  Monday. 

Ada  was  at  once  attracted  by  the  gentle,  win- 
ning manners  of  little  Arthur.  In  play  hours 
they  were  always  seen  together,  in  rainy  days 
poring  over  some  favorite  book ;  or  when,  accom-* 
panied  by  Frances  and  Miss  Manley,  they  took 
their  daily  walk,  it  was  Arthur  who  pointed  out 
the  beautiful  views,  and  told  the  quaint  traditions 
of  many  a  spot,  which  he  had  learned  from  his  old 
nurse,  or  had  picked  up  from  the  "old-fashioned 
books  he  delighted  to  read. 

Many  a  taunt  Ada  had  to  bear  from  Frances, 


80  CHILDREN"  OF  THE   GREAT  KING. 

for  taking  up,  as  she  termed  it,  with  such  a  child 
as  Arthur ;  but  Ada  bore  them  quietly.  Between 
Frances  and  herself  she  felt  there  was  nothing  in 
common,  and  not  to  quarrel  with  her  was  her 
greatest  desire.  "Bear  and  forbear,  my  child," 
had  been  her  dead  mother's  favorite  advice,  and 
on  it  Ada  strove  to  act ;  but  with  one  so  provok- 
ing as  Frances  it  was  not  easy  to  do  so,  and  ere 
long  Ada  saw  plainly  that  her  path  was  becoming 
a  steep  one,  strewn  with  thorns,  small  ones  per- 
haps, but  sharp  in  wounding. 

How  often  in  life  we  find  that  the  thorns  or  trials 
that  are  so  ill  to  bear,  so  sharp  and  piercing,  are 
little  ones — things  that  even  to  ourselves  we  blush 
to  own  hurt  us  at  all.  So  was  it  with  Ada.  Real 
unkindness,  sharp  words  from  any  one,  she  could 
have  borne  better  than  the  constant  mocking,  real 
or  feigned,  of  her  cousin,  and  the  petty  tricks 
which  were  played  off  upon  her. 

The  girls  slept  in  rooms  next  to  each  other,  and 
dearly  did  Ada  prize  the  early  morning  hour 
when  she  could  study  in  quiet,  in  the  Bible  her 
father  had  given  her  the  will  of  the  Great  King. 
One  morning  as  she  sat  thus  occupied,  forgetting 
all  petty  annoyances  in  reading  of  the  life  and 
sufferings  of  our  Saviour,  Frances  burst  in. 


CHILDREN  OF  THE   GREAT  KING.  31 

n 

"  What  are  you  about,  Ada  ?  reading  the  Bible ! 
What  in  the  world  do  you  do  that  for  ?  'tis  not 
Sunday,  and  you'll  hear  papa  read  a  chapter  at 
prayer-time,  you  know.  Put  that  away  now,  and 
come  out  for  a  while  to"  the  garden.  I  must  have 
you,  'tis  so  early,  and  I  want  to  wash  my  face  in 
the  dew.  Come,  quick." 

In  vain  Ada  said  she  would  not ;  she  preferred 
to  stay  and  read.  "  And  besides,  Frances,  did  not 
Miss  Manley  tell  us  the  other  day  that  we  were 
not  to  go  out  again  in  the  morning  so  early  ?'" 

"  Bother  Miss  Manley ;  who  cares  for  what  she 
says  ? "  was  the  impetuous  answer.  "  Besides 
she  is  in  bed  fast  asleep,  and  would  never  see  us 
or  know  a  word  about  it.  Come  away,  and  don't 
be  a  goose." 

At  first  Ada  had  hesitated,  she  dreaded  so  to 
oppose  her  cousin;  but  now  the  holy  words  she 
had  been  reading  came  to  her  help,  and  she 
boldly  answered,  "  No,  Frances,  I  shall  not  go ; 
we  were  forbidden  to  do  so  ;  and  if  Miss  Manley 
does  not  see  us  the  Great  King  does,  and  he  has 
desired  us  to  obey  those  that  have  the  rule  over 
us." 

"  What  do  you  mean,  Ada  ?  Who  is  the  Great 
King,  and  how  could  he  see  us?  Kings  have 


32  CHILDREN  OF  THE   GREAT  KING. 

« 

something  else  to  do  than  watch  the  pranks  of 
girls  like  you  and  me."  But  Ada's  only  answer 
was,  pointing  to  a  verse  in  the  Bible  she  held, 
"  The  eyes  of  the  Lord  are  in  every  place,  behold- 
ing the  evil  and  the  good."  "He  is  the  Great 
King,"  she  whispered;  "I  must  obey  his  com- 
mands." 

"Absurd,  Ada,  as  if  he  cared  about  a  little 
thing  like  this.  I  believe  it  is  all  pretense  your 
speaking  that  way;  you  just  do  it  to  make  me 
angry.  If  Arthur  had  asked  you  you  would 
have  done  it,  and  no  word  about  right  or  wrong;" 
and  so  saying  she  went  away,  slamming  the  door 
after  her. 

Poor  Ada;  she  knew  she  had  done  right,  but 
she  felt  disconsolate  and  frightened  for  the  conse- 
quences of  her  cousin's  anger.  O  for  some  one  to 
help  and  guide  her  now !  Papa  away,  and  even 
Claude;  she  drooped  her  head,  and  the  bright 
morning  sun  shone  on  her  eyes  wet  with  tears. 
Turning  the  leaves  of  her  Bible  she  saw  the 
words,  "I  the  Lord  thy  God  will  hold  thy  right 
hand,  saying  unto  thee,  Fear  not,  I  will  help  thee." 

Suddenly  she  remembered  he'r  dream.  The 
guide  who  had  held  her  hand,  and  led  her  over  all 
difficulties,  was  the  Son  of  the  Great  King,  the 


CHILDREN   OF  THE   GREAT   KING.  33 

Lord  Jesus.  With  his  help  she  would  bear  all 
things ;  and  kneeling  down,  she  sought  earnestly 
that  he  would  be  true  to  his  promise,  and  hold 
her  fast,  enabling  her  to  do  his  will.  Can  we 
doubt  that  her  prayer  "received  a  full  answer? 
No ;  "  for  this  is  the  confidence  that  we  have  in 
him,  that  if  we  ask  anything  according  to  his  will, 
he  heareth  us."  And  her  prayer  was  in  full  ac- 
cordance with  the  will  of  Him  who  hath  said, 
"  Wilt  thou  not  from  henceforth  say  unto  me,  My 
Father,  thou  art  the  guide  of  my  youth  ?  " 

With  a  lighter  heart  she  rose  and  proceeded  to 
the  school-room.  Miss  Manley  and  Arthur  greeted 
her  kindly,  but  through  the  whole  day  Frances 
bestowed  nothing  but  black  looks  on  her;  and 
when  in  one  or  two  things  Ada  volunteered  to 
help  her,  all  the  thanks  she  got  was, 

"Go  away,  I  don't  wish  your  help  nor  your 
company  either ;  saints  are  not  in  my  line  at  all." 

Saint !  Poor  Ada  !  the  rush  of  angry  feelings 
called  forth  by  her  cousin's  words  told  her  how 
far  she  was  from  meriting  such  a  name.  No,  no, 
full  of  imperfection  she  was,  and  knew  herself  to 
be.  But  her  hand,  feeble  as  it  was,  had  knocked 
at  the  door  of  the  throne  of  mercy ;  her  heaven- 
ward pilgrimage  was  begun ;  and,  from  the  land 


34  CHILDREN  OF  THE   GREAT  KING. 

of  glory,  angels,  and  the  spirits  of  the  just  made 
perfect — the  great  cloud  of  witnesses — stooped 
to  watch  the  progress  in  grace,  slow  it  might  be, 
but  sure,  of  one  of  the  children  of  the  Great 
King. 


CHILDREN  OF  THE   GREAT   KING.  35 


CHAPTER  V. 

"  Though  sin  and  death  and  hell 
Your  heavenly  march  oppose, 
Fear  not,  it  shall  be  well, 
God  will  confound  your  foes : 
On  him  depend,  the  fight  renew ; 
As  Gideon  conquered,  so  shall  you." 

THE  parsonage  where  Claude  was  boarded  was 
a  pleasantly  situated  house,  commanding  a  beau- 
tiful view  of  the  sea,  down  to  the  very  edge  of 
which  sloped  thickly-wooded  hills,  while  the 
beach  was  near  enough  to  permit  the  boys  on  a 
half  holiday  to  walk  there,  and  amid  the  rocks 
and  caverns  search  out  the  exquisitely  beautiful 
zoophytes,  and  the  many  varieties  of  sea  anem- 
ones, serpularia,  and  other  creatures  which  there 
abound. 

Bitterly  Claude  felt  at  first  the  leaving  Ada 
alone  among  people  whom  she  hardly  knew ;  and 
even  the  little  he  had  seen  of  Frances  made  him 
fear  that  his  little  sister  would  in  many  ways  be 
sorely  tried  by  her.  But  Ada  had  never  forgot- 
ten the  lesson  of  unselfishness  which  Claude  him- 
3 


36     CHILDREN  OF  THE  GREAT  KING. 

self  had  taught  her  on  the  evening  their  father 
had  first  told  of  his  intended  departure,  and 
though  she  would  have  liked  to  have  told  him  of 
the  many  petty  trials  she  had  to  bear,  she  did 
not  do  so,  knowing  how  he  would  vex  himself 
about  it. 

So  when  the  Saturdays  came  round  she  always 
contrived  to  have  a  smiling  face  to  welcome  her 
brother,  eagerly  listening  to  all  his  stories  of  his 
school  life,  reading  over  and  over  with  him  the 
letters  received  during  the  week  from  their  father, 
telling  him  how  kind  uncle  and  aunt  were,  retail- 
ing some  of  Arthur's  smart  sayings  and  quaint 
remarks,  and  laughing  over  little  Minnie's  droll 
attempts  at  speaking ;  and  as  Claude  listened  to 
her,  he  felt  sure  his  idea  about  her  being  annoyed 
by  Frances  must  have  been  a  wrong  one,  and  he 
returned  to  school  pleased  that  Ada  was  so  happy. 

Well,  older  and  wiser  than  he  have  been  de- 
ceived in  like  manner  many  and  many  a  time, 
and  it  is  best  it  should  be  so.  It  is  not  well  to 
vex  even  those  of  whose  sympathy  we  are  surest 
with  all  our  difficulties  and  little  thorns.  There 
are  burdens  which,  as  far  as  man  is  concerned,  'tis 
best  to  bear  alone ;  but  none,  great  or  small,  which 
we  may  not  roll  on  the  Lord. 


CHILDREN  OF  THE   GREAT  KING.  37 

Claude's  master,  Mr.  Marshman,  was  loved  by- 
all  who  knew  him.  Earnest  alike  in  his  clerical 
work  and  in  the  responsible  one  of  education 
which  he  had  undertaken,  he  was  well  qualified  to 
lead  such  a  boy  as  Claude.  Strict  in  discipline, 
but  yet  unfailing  in  love  and  true  sympathy,  the 
right-minded  boys  felt  a  rebuke  from  him  or  a 
displeased  look  the  greatest  of  punishments ;  and 
ere  long  Claude  felt  he  could  speak  to  him  and 
seek  his  advice  as  he  had  done  that  of  his 
father. 

Hitherto  Claude  had  mixed  little,  too  little, 
with  other  boys,  and  he  felt  that  his  great  diffi- 
culties lay  with  them.  Some  among  them  were 
wanting  in  that  sense  of  honor  and  truth  on 
which  Claude  prided  himself,  and  from  these  he 
shrank  with  abhorrence,  forgetting  that  his  own 
faults,  though  of  a  different  kind,  were  conspicu- 
ous enough. 

In  especial  he  was  tried  by  one  boy,  about  a 
year  younger  than  himself,  a  relation  of  his  Aunt 
Willoughby's,  of  the  name  of  Whitmore.  He  was 
one  who  thought  little  of  hiding  a  fault  by  a 
falsehood,  or  shifting  blame  off  his  own  shoulders 
on  that  of  others.  Once  or  twice  had  Claude 
detected  him  in  doing  so,  and  his  loud  protesta- 


38  CHILDREN  OF  THE   GREAT  KING. 

tions  had  called  down  his  indignation  on  him  as 
a  meddling  fool. 

Claude,  full  of  disgust  at  such  meanness,  took 
credit  to  himself  for  having  given  his  opinion  of 
him  so  forcibly. 

"  I  wont  be  a  partaker  of  other  people's  sins," 
he  said,  "  and  see  them  going  on  like  that,  without 
letting  them  know  how  wicked  and  mean  it  is.  I 
declare  if  it  were  not  that  I  could  not  bear  to  be  a 
tell-tale  I  would  let  Mr.  Marshman  know." 

Softly,  softly,  Claude !  he  that  would  pull  the 
mote  out  of  his  brother's  eye  must  first  have 
plucked  the  beam  out  of  his  own.  It  is  well,  it  is 
right,  to  warn  our  companions  of  the  errors  of 
their  ways ;  but  remember,  it  becometh  sinful 
beings  like  ourselves  to  speak  the 'truth  IN  LOVE. 
When  we  feel  we  can  do  that,  then,  but  not  till 
then,  are  we  fit  to  reprove  the  faults  of  others. 
In  his  first  indignation  at  the  sins  of  Charlie 
Whitmore,  Claude  was  forgetting  to  watch 
against  his  own;  and  not  until  sent  to  his  room 
for  an  outburst  of  passion,  did  he  see  clearly  that 
his  self-righteous  spirit  was  a  device  of  his  great 
enemy  to  cause  him  to  fall.  Defeated  again  in 
the  spiritual  battle-field,  and  that  when  he  was 
feeling  so  sure  of  victory,  no  wonder  he  was 


CHILDREN   OF  THE   GREAT  KING.  39 

abashed.  But  rejoice  not  over  him,  thou  enemy 
of  souls  !  though  he  has  fallen,  he  shall  rise  again, 
humbled  by  the  fall,  but  better  able  to  cope  with 
thee ;  for,  having  learned  his  own  weakness,  he 
has  sought  more  strength  from  the  strong  One, 
against  whose  power  thou  art  feeble  indeed. 

Kindly  and  forcibly  Mr.  Marshman  reasoned 
with  the  boy  on  the  evil  of  thus  giving  way  to 
passion,  reminding  him  of  the  Scripture  declara- 
tion, that  "  he  that  hath  no  rule  over  his  spirit,  is 
like  a  city  that  is  broken  down  and  without 
walls."  "  And,"  said  he,  "  you  know  well  enough, 
Claude,  how  easily  the  enemy  can  rush  into  and 
take  possession  of  a  city  which  they  find  thus 
unprotected." 

Claude  owned  his  fault,  and  from  that  time 
became  more  watchful,  more  fearful  of  falling; 
and,  remembering  his  father's  advice,  he  sought 
more  earnestly  the  help  of  the  Great  King. 

Anxiously  did  Mr.  Marshman  watch  him.  He 
was  attracted  by  the  open,  ingenuous  character 
of  the  boy,  and  he  felt  that,  rightly  used,  his 
example  might  prove  a  blessing  to  the  other 
boys.  At  the  same  time  he  was  fully  "alive  to  his 
failings,  and  determined,  as  far  as  he  could,  and 
by  the  help  of  God,  to  eradicate  them.  He 


40  CHILDREN  OF  THE  GREAT  KING. 

noticed  at  once  the  bad  feeling  which  had  sprung 
up  between  Claude  and  Whitmore,  and  felt  it  his 
duty  to  put  a  stop  to  it,  though  for  a  while  he 
was  puzzled  as  to  what  would  be  the  best  means 
of  doing  so. 

An  opportunity  soon  occurred.  On  one  occa- 
sion Charlie  Whitmore  had  been  detected  in  false- 
hood by  Mr.  Marshman,  and  severely  punished. 
"  Served  him  right,"  was  the  feeling  among  the 
other  boys,  who  all  disliked  Whitmore.  That 
evening  Claude  found  Mr.  Marshman  sitting 
alone,  looking  tired  and  vexed.  He  had  gone 
into  the  room  looking  for  a  book  he  had  left,  and 
seeing  Mr.  Marshman  sitting,  turned  at  once, 
fearing  to  disturb  him.  Somewhat  to  his  sur- 
prise he  heard  himself  called  back,  and  desired 
to  sit  down,  as  Mr.  Marshman  wished  to  speak 
to  him. 

"  There  is  not  much  love  between  you  and 
Charlie  Whitmore,  Claude,  I  see.  How  is  that  ?  " 

"  Love !  no  indeed,  sir,  there's  precious  little  of 
that  between  us ;  he  hates  me,  and — and — "  as  he 
spoke  he  stammered — "  I  suppose  I  am  not  much 
better.  I  don't  like  him,  that  is  certain.  He 
would  do  anything  to  spite  me  ;  but  indeed,  sir,  I 
would  rather  not  say  anything  more  about  him, 


CHILDREN  OF  THE   GREAT  KING.  41 

for  I  always  feel  angry  when  I  even  think  of 
him." 

"  Then  in  fact,"  said  Mr.  Marshman,  "  you 
count  him  your  enemy  ?  " 

"  Pretty  near  that,  sir,"  replied  Claude. 

"Well,  Claude,  that  being  the  case,  what  is 
your  duty  concerning  him  ?  What  is  the  com- 
mand of  the  Great  King  ?  Read  here,"  taking 
up  the  Bible :  "  I  say  unto  you,  Love  your  ene- 
mies, do  good  to  them  that  hate  you,  and  pray 
for  them  which  despitefully  use  you." 

The  boy  flushed  scarlet  as  he  read. 

"Well,  Claude,  is  it  not  your  desire  to  obey 
the  King's  will  in  all  things  ?  " 

"  Yes,  sir,  I  do  wish ;  but  I  never  thought  of  it 
as  applying  to  Whitmore  and  me.  Some  ene- 
mies it  may  mean." 

Mr.  Marshman  interrupted  him : 

"Nay,  Claude,  the  verse  makes  no  exception. 
It  does  not  say,  Love  all  your  enemies  except 
young  Whitmore  ?  " 

"  No,  sir,  of  course ;  but  it  would  be  hard  to  do. 
I  don't  think  I  could." 

"  Claude,  do  you  think  the  Lord  ever  commands 
his  people  to  do  anything  which  it  is  impossible 
for  them  to  do — ever  lays  upon  them  burdens 


42  CHILDREN  OF  THE   GREAT  KING. 

which  he  will  not  help  them  to  bear  if  they  ask 
him  ?  It  is  Satan  who  bids  us  hate  out  enemies ; 
and,  my  boy,  never  forget  that,  whatever  you  may 
profess,  in  reality  'ye  are  the  servants  of  him 
whom  ye  obey.'  And,  Claude,  I  believe  if  you  try 
to  love  Charlie  Whitmore  it  will  prove  not  only  a 
blessing  to  yourself,  but  to  him  also.  I  believe 
if  anything  will  do  him  good  it  will  be  done  by 
love.  Poor  boy,  I  pity  him,  for  his  advantages 
have  been  few :  his  father  is  a  busy  merchant,  al- 
ways too  occupied  to  devote  time  to  his  children ; 
and  he  never  knew  a  mother's  care  or  love.  She" 
died  when  he  was  born,  so  the  boy  has  grown  up 
neglected;  none  have  sought  to  lead  him  in  the 
right  way.  He  fears  me  too  much ;  and  I,  sorely 
against  my  will,  have  had  to  punish  him  for  ex- 
ample's sake  too  often  to  have  gained  much  ground 
with  him.  I  believe  if  a  boy  of  his  own  age  could 
gain  his  love  and  confidence  it  might  be  the  sav- 
ing of  him.  Claude,  to  you  may  belong  the  honor, 
the  blessing  of  leading  him  to  the  Great  King. 
Will  you  try  ?  " 

For  one  moment  Claude  hesitated,  then  said  in 
a  tone  of  emotion,  "  God  helping  me,  I  will,  sir." 

From  that  day  Claude  held  no  longer  aloof  from 
Charlie  Whitmore,  but  sought  by  all  means  to  win 


CHILDREN  OF  THE  GREAT  KING.  43 

his  confidence,  not  by  abetting  in  the  smallest  de- 
gree his  faults,  but  by  kindness  striving  to  remove 
the  bad  feeling  which  had  sprung  up  between 
them.  Was  Whitmore  in  difficulty  over  his  Greek 
or  Latin  ?  Claude  offered  his  aid.  At  first  it  was 
repelled;  but  by  degrees,  seeing  the  offer  was 
made  in  earnest,  it  was  accepted;  with  wonder, 
it  is  true,  why  Percy  should  concern  himself  about 
him. 

At  first,  it  must  be  acknowledged,  the  effort  was 
a  great  one  to  Claude.  To  lay  aside  a  prejudice, 
and  that  a  well-grounded  one,  is  easy  neither  for 
young  nor  old ;  and  but  for  the  boy's  desire  to  do 
right,  to  overcome  his  wrong  feelings,  and  obey 
the  commands  of  the  heavenly  King,  he  would 
have  given  up  the  task  as  hopeless.  But  the  vic- 
tory over  himself  was  gained,  and  as  time  passed 
on  he  had  his  reward ;  for,  touched  by  his  kind- 
ness, the  neglected  boy  became  warmly  attached 
to  him  ;  and  seeing  Claude's  straight-forward, 
truthful  behavior,  learned  at  least  to  respect  these 
qualities  in  him,  and,  through  fear  of  incurring  his 
displeasure,  strove  against  deceitful  ways.  The 
motive  at  first  was  not  the  right  one,  but  neverthe- 
less it  was  a  step  in  the  right  direction ;  and  Claude 
despaired  not,  that  ere  long  he  would  seek  to  do 


44  CHILDREN  OF  THE   GREAT  KING. 

right  from  a  higher  motive,  even  out  of  love  to  the 
Great  King.  "With  pleasure  Mr.  Marshman  watched 
the  two  boys,  and  saw  how  both  in  their  different 
ways  were  improving. 

Knowing  well  how.  powerful  is  the  force  of 
example,  Claude  was  daily,  in  the  strength  of  the 
Lord,  subduing  his  hasty  temper.  Many  a  sore 
struggle  it  cost  him.  Often  in  the  middle  of  a 
game,  when  tempted  by  some  hasty  word  to  return 
an  angry,  passionate  reply,  he  gulped  it  down,  re- 
membering that  by  giving  way  to  temper  he  was 
not  only  sinning  against  the  Master  he  served,  but 
casting  a  stumbling-block  in  the  way  of  one  who, 
though  in  much  weakness,  was  yet  he  hoped  really 
beginning  to  enter  on  the  path  of  life. 

Was  the  victory  thus  obtained  over  himself  a 
small  one  ?  Answer  me,  school-boys  !  When 
angry  passions  are  up,  and  hard  words  and  names 
are  huiled  at  each  other,  is  it  easy  to  bear  them, 
and  retort  not;  easy  to  stand  the  very  chaffing 
provoked  by  silence  ?  Or,  say,  is  not  he  who  can 
bear  such  an  attack  steadily  and  unflinchingly  a 
greater  hero  than  he  who  stands  undismayed  while 
the  enemy's  balls  are  flying  over  his  head? 

Yet  to  himself  it  seemed  as  if  he  were  making 
but  little  progress ;  so  many  wrong  feelings  to  be 


CHILDREN  OF  THE   GREAT   KING.  45 

daily  resisted,  so  many  enemies  to  be  slain.  One 
overcome,  another  arose ;  but  the  eye  of  the  great 
Captain  of  his  salvation  was  on  the  boy,  and  he 
noted  that  step  by  step  he  was  advancing ;  fight- 
ing his  way,  it  is  true,"inch,  by  inch,  but  recogniz- 
ing more  and  more  that  the  arm  which  upheld 
him,  the  smile  which  encouraged,  the  love  which 
allured  him,  were  all  from  above,  all  proceeding 
from  him  who  is  King  of  kings  and  Lord  of  lords. 


46  CHILDREN   OF  THE  GREAT  KING. 


CHAPTER  VI. 

"  Lord,  thou  hast  won;  at  length  I  yield. 
My  heart,  by  mighty  grace  compelled, 

Surrenders  all  to  thee. 
Now,  Lord,  I  would  be  thine  alone  ; 
Come,  take  possession  of  thine  own, 

For  thou  hast  set  me  free. 
Released  from  Satan's  hard  commands, 
See,  all  my  powers  waiting  stand 

To  be  employed  by  thee." 

ONE  glorious  August  Sabbath  afternoon  Ada 
and  Arthur  were  sitting  together  in  a  small  arbor 
in  the  garden. 

Flowers  of  every  kind,  of  the  most  beautiful 
hues  and  sweetest  perfume,  were  around  them. 
On  their  right-hand  side  stood  the  orchard,  the 
trees  laden  with  their  fast-ripening  fruit ;  on  their 
left  the  large  shrubbery,  in  which  many  of  the 
rarest  shrubs  were  to  be  seen.  On  each  side  of 
the  bower  were  myrtles,  growing  to  such  a  height 
that  their  branches  mingled  together  till  they 
formed  a  canopy;  while  intermixed  with  them, 
and  presenting  a  beautiful  contrast  to  their  glossy 
dark-green  leaves,  were  numbers  of  the  exquisite 


CHILDREN   OF  THE   GREAT  KING.  47 

Devoniensis  roses.     Close  by  played  a  fountain,  its 
waters  falling  into  a  pure  white  marble  basin. 

A  slight,  very  slight  haze  had  arisen,  which  tem- 
pered a  little  the  burning  heat  of  the  sun,  and  yet 
rather  increased  than  diminished  the  beauty  around. 
Not  a  breath  stirred  the  trees ;  all  nature  seemed 
hushed ;  the  chirp  of  the  birds,  the  hum  of  some 
bees  as  they  flew  home  to  their  hives  laden  with 
spoil,  and  the  gentle  splash,  splash  of  the  water, 
were  the  only  sounds  that  broke  the  silence. 

Both  children  sat  gazing  at  the  sights  around 
them,  enraptured  with  their  beauty,  almost  fearing 
to  speak,  lest  at  the  sound  of  their  words  the  whole 
should  vanish  as  in  a  tale  of  fairy  land. 

Arthur  was  the  first  to  break  the  silence.  "Ada, 
is  it  not  lovely  ?  and  all,  all,  as  you  say,  the  work- 
manship of  the  Great  King !  How  very  great  he 
must  be !  And,  Ada,  do  you  know  I  can't  help 
being  so  glad  to  think  he  must  love  what  is  beauti- 
ful, or  he  never  would  have  made  the  earth  so  fair." 
The  boy  raised  his  eyes  to  heaven,  as  if  he  found 
in  this  thought  a  bond  of  union  between  the  Crea- 
tor and  himself.  "  Ada,  speak !  are  not  you  sure 
he  does  ?" 

"  O  yes,  I  know  it,  Arthur ;  see  here  !"  she  said, 
opening  the  Bible  she  held  in  her  hand ;  "  he  tells 


48  CHILDREN  OF  THE  GREAT  KING. 

us  so  in  his  word.  After  he  had  created  the  world 
he  looked  at  it,  and  behold  it  was  very  good ;  and 
he  loves  to  look  on  it  still.  The  Psalmist  says, 
'The  Lord  rejoiceth  in  his  works;'  and,  Arthur, 
look  at  this  verse  in  the  fourth  chapter  of  Revela- 
tion-; papa  showed  it  to  Claude  and  me  one  day. 
After  the  four-and-twenty  elders  have  cast  their 
crowns  before  the  throne  of  Jesus,  they  sing, 
'  Thou  art  worthy,  O  Lord,  to  receive  glory,  and 
honor,  and  power :  for  thou  hast  created  all 
things,  and  for  thy  pleasure  they  are  and  were 
created.' " 

"  Yes,  Ada,  I  like  that ;  read  it  again.  For  His 
pleasure !  O,  that  is  so  good.  The  Great  King 
can  see  every  place ;  so  he  can  see  this  very  spot, 
and  rejoice  in  its  beauty.  He  sees  us,  too ;  and 
O,  Ada,  I  don't  do  his  will  as  I  should ;  and,  till 
you  came,  I  never  even  used  to  think  of  him  at  all, 
nor  of  Jesus,  the  Son  of  the  Great  King.  Is  he 
King  as  well  as  his  Father  ?  " 

"  Yes,"  answered  Ada ;  "  I  asked  papa  that  one 
day,  and  he  told  me  he  was  equal  in  glory ;  and 
so  is  the  Holy  Ghost,  who  dwells  in  the  hearts  ot 
those  who  love  him,  and  makes  them  holy." 

Arthur  sat  a  few  minutes  lost  in  thought ;  then 
said,  "  Ada,  tell  me  again  about  your  dream  about 


CHILDREN   OF  THE   GREAT  KING.  49 

the  guide  and  the  king's  palace."  Ada  told  him 
all.  When  she  ceased  his  face  was  aglow  with 
joy:  "I  see  it  so  clearly  now;  yes,  your  guide 
must  have  heen  the  kind  Jesus  who,  when  he  was 
on  earth,  loved  the  children  and  blessed  them.  I 
do  hope  he  will  be  my  guide  too,  and  hold  me 
fast.  But,  Ada,  do  you  know  I  often  think  my 
journey  will  be  a  short  one.  I  heard  a  lady,  who 
was  calling  on  mamma  the  other  day,  say  to  a 
friend  who  was  with  her,  '  That  boy  is  not  long 

for  this  world.'     Of  course  she  did  not  know  that 

» 

I  heard  her.  For  a  moment  I  could  not  bear  the 
thought ;  but  I  remembered  your  dream,  and  then 
I  felt  so  glad  to  think  that  I  would,  perhaps  with 
Jesus  as  my  guide,  soon  reach  the  palace .  of  the 
Great  King." 

A  rustling  of  leaves  at  their  back  startled  the 
children,  and  made  them  look  round  just  as  Mr. 
Willoughby  entered  the  bower,  and,  sitting  down, 
drew  his  boy  lovingly  to  his  side.  Attracted  by 
their  voices,  he  had  been  drawn  to  the  bower,  and 
had  overheard  with  some  surprise  their  conversa- 
tion. He  had  meant  to  go  away  without  disturb- 
ing them;  but  Arthur's  last  words  had  sent  a 
thrill  through  him,  and  awoke  a  dread  which  for 
some  time  he  had  overcome — the  fearful  dread 


50  CHILpllEN  OF  THE  GREAT  KING. 

that  his  loved  only  son  would  be  early  taken  away. 
Not  one  word  could  he  at  first  say ;  he  only  pressed 
a  kiss  on  the  boy's  forehead,  and  held  him  as  if  to 
guard  him  from  some  threatening  danger. 

Arthur  was  accustomed  to  his  father's  caresses, 
and  did  not  appear  to  think  them  anything  re- 
markable in  the  present  instance ;  but  Ada  saw  at 
once  how  it  was,  and  longed  to  say  a  word  to  com- 
fort her  uncle.  But  just  as  she  was  beginning 
to  say  something,  in  the  hope  to  make  him  for- 
get Arthur's  words,  Claude  came  running  up  to 
them,  and  said  that  Miss  Manley  desired  them  to 
come  in,  as  she  wished  to  hear  them  say  their 
Bible  lesson  before  it  was  time  to  go  to  the 
evening  church. 

Mr.  Willoughby  released  Arthur,  and  desired 
him  to  go  in  with  Claude,  and  tell  Miss  Manley 
that  Ada  would  come  presently.  "  I  wish  to  speak 
with  her  for  a  short  time;  but  don't  put  off  the 
Bible  lesson  for  her,  I  will  hear  her's  myself." 
Both  boys  were  somewhat  astonished  at  their  mes- 
sage, but  went  off  at  once,  Claude  expressing  to 
Arthur  his  wonder  how  Ada  would  like  to  say  her 
lesson  to  uncle. 

"  O,  she  wont  be  frightened  a  bit !  "  Arthur  de- 
clared ;  "  don't  you  notice,  Claude,  when  Ada  says 


CHILDREN   OF  THE   GREAT   KING.  51 

or  reads  anything  out  of  the  Bible,  she  seems  al- 
ways as  if  she  were  standing  in  the  very  presence 
of  the  Great  King,  and  forgers  all  about  any  one 
in  the  room  ?  " 

Yes,  Claude  knew  quite  well  the  sort  of  look 
Ada  had  then,  and  said  that  Arthur  was  right,  and 
she  would  have  no  fear. 

As  soon  as  the  boys  were  out  of  hearing,  Mr. 
Willoughby  said,  "  Ada,  tell  me  truly,  is  Arthur 
ill  ?  Does  he  complain  ?  and  if  so,  why  have  I  not 
been  told  ?  I  overheard  your  conversation,  and 
made  out  that  the  boy  thinks  he  is  dying." 

"  No,  no,  uncle,  I  don't  think  Arthur  quite  meant 

I 

that ;  only  you  know  he  is  never  very  strong,  and 
the  lady's  remark  has  made  an  impression  on  him. 
You  know  he  so  often  broods  over  a  thing ;  and 
even  when  he  spoke,  I  don't  think  he  thought  he 
was  dying  or  ill  now,  only  that  perhaps  his  jour- 
ney might  not  be  so  long  as  that  of  those  who  were 
stronger.  Indeed,  uncle,  you  must  not  vex  your- 
self about  what  he  said ;  I  am  sure  neither  aunt 
nor  Miss  Manley  thinks  he  is  ill." 

Mr.  Willoughby  drew  a  long  breath,  as  if  re- 
lieved. "Well,  Ada,  I  hope  you  are  right;  he 
does  not  look  worse,  but  we  must  rouse  him,  and 

not  let  him  mope.     Please  God  he  may  be  spared 
4 


52  CHILDREN  OF  THE   GREAT  KING. 

to  us  yet.  And  now  come  and  tell  me  about  the 
Great  King ;  his  words  you  know,  Ada,  are  for  old 
as  well  as  young.  Let  me  see  what  is  the  Bible 
lesson  for  to-day." 

Ada  turned  it  up.  "It  is  in  the  twenty-first 
chapter  of  St.  Luke,  from  the  twenty-fifth  verse  to 
the  thirty-seventh.  It  is  about  the  second  coming 
of  Jesus,  the  Son  of  the  Great  King,  who  shall 
come  in  a  cloud  with  power  and  great  glory." 
Solemnly  and  distinctly  Ada  repeated  the  passage 
so  full  of  instruction  and  warning. 

Long  after  she  had  finished,  and  at  her  uncle's 
bidding  had  gone  in  to  Miss  Manley,  he  sat  still, 
the  words  she  had  spoken  echoing  in  his  ears ;  and 
almost  unconsciously  he  repeated  over  and  over 
the  pointed  warning,  "  Take  heed  to  yourself,  lest 
at  any  time  your  hearts  be  overcharged  with  the 
cares  of  this  life,  and  so  that  day  come  upon  you 
unawares."  As  vividly  as  if  a  voice  from  heaven 
had  called  him  by  name,  and  delivered  the  words 
as  a  message  sent  to  himself,  did  they  now  come 
home  to  his  heart. 

Mr.  Willoughby  was  not  a  man  unmindful  of 
the  concerns  of  his  soul,  or  without  a  certain  de- 
gree of  respect,  nay,  even  love,  for  the  Lord. 
When  a  young  man  he  had  taken  a  warm  interest 


CHILDREN  OF  THE  GREAT  KING.  53 

in  religious  things,  and  still  was  ever  ready  with 
his  money,  and  a  good  word,  to  help  the  cause  of 
the  Lord ;  but  he  knew  nothing  of  real  fellowship 
with  the  Father,  Son,  and  Holy  Spirit.  His  soul 
had  never  thirsted,  as  the  true  Christian  does,  for 
God,  the  living  God ;  he  had  not  realized  a  personal 
Saviour.  He  had  once  been  partially  advanced  in 
the  knowledge  of  these  things;  the  light  had 
broken  so  far,  when  he  had  come  to  a  sudden 
stop,  and  the  light,  though  not  extinguished, 
had  become  clouded,  neither  clear  nor  dark; 
and  why? 

In  the  inmost  depths  of  his  soul  the  question 
was  answered.  The  cares  of  this  life  had  over- 
charged his  heart ;  so  much  so  that,  like  the  inn 
at  Bethlehem,  there  was  no  place  left  for  the  Sav- 
iour to  dwell  there;  and  were  Christ  to  appear 
that  day,  or  death  to  call  him  to  his  presence,  as  a 
snare  it  would  come  upon  him  and  find  him  un- 
prepared. What,  then,  was  he  to  do  ?  how  escape 
from  the  evil  effects  of  the  cares  of  this  life  ?  Ada's 
Bible,  which  he  still  retained  in  his  hand,  told  him 
the  only  course  to  pursue  for  pardon  of  sin — to 
wash  in  the  fountain  of  Jesus's  shed  blood,  and  for 
the  future  watch  and  pray.  And  there,  in  that 
lovely  bower,  amid  one  of  the  sweetest  scenes  of 


54  CHILDREN  OF  THE   GREAT  KING. 

the  Creator's  handiwork,  an  earnest  childlike 
prayer  for  pardon  and  guidance  rose  to  heaven, 
and  was  presented  by  the  great  Intercessor  to  the 
King ;  and  a  song  of  joy  was  heard  from  angels' 
lips,  singing  through  the  courts  of  heaven,  that 
yet  another  soul  was  awakened  from  spiritual 
sleep,  and  was  pressing  on  to  the  city  of  the  Great 
King. 

As  Mr.  Willoughby  walked  with  his  wife  and 
children  that  evening  to  the  house  of  God,  it 
seemed  to  him  as  if  he  had  begun  a  new  existence ; 
every  object  in  nature  appeared  clothed  in  new 
beauty ;  the  very  rays  of  the  evening  sun  which 
fell  in  showers  around,  playing  on  hills  and  trees 
and  corn-covered  fields,  and  turning  the  graceful 
spire  of  the  church  to  gold,  reminded  him  of  the 
glory  before  the  throne.  The  service  of  the  sanc- 
tuary was  precious  to  his  soul,  refreshing  it  as  the 
falling  dew.  Pie  noted  how  earnestly,  how  sweetly, 
the  childlike  voices  of  Claude,  Ada,  and  his  OAvn 
Arthur  chimed  in  when  the  evening  hymn  echoed 
through  the  little  church. 

"  Glory  to  thee,  my  God,  this  night, 
For  all  the  blessings  of  the  light. 
Keep  me,  0  keep  me,  King  of  kings, 
Under  thine  own  almighty  wings  1 " 


CHILDREN  OF  THE   GREAT   KING.  55 

He  realized  for  himself  now  the  blessing  of  such 
a  keeping.  But  many  in  that  church  knew  it  not ; 
wise  in  the  things  of  time,  they  lacked  the  chil- 
dren's simple  faith.  Now,  just  as  in  the  days 
when  Jesus  dwelt  on  the  earth,  those  things  are 
often  hid  from  the  wise  and  prudent,  and  revealed 
unto  babes.  "  Even  so,  Father ;  for  so  it  seemeth 
good  in  thy  sight." 

As  they  walked  home  in  the  subdued  evening 
light,  Arthur,  who  held  his  father's  hand,  pointed 
to  a  beautiful  fleecy  cloud,  (which  lay  cradled 
near  the  setting  sun,  "  a  gleam  of  crimson  tinging 
its  braided  snow,")  saying,  "  O  papa,  mamma, 
look  how  lovely  ! " 

Both  looked,  at  his  request,  and  acknowledged 
its  beauty ;  and  Mr.  Willoughby,  gazing  at  it  as 
if  penetrating  into  the  depths  beyond,  answered, 
more  his  own  thoughts  than  the  child's,  "Yes, 
the  very  balancing  of  the  clouds  is  the  work 
of  the  Great  King,  who  is  perfect  in  knowl- 
edge." 

Mrs.  Willoughby  looked  at  her  husband,  some- 
what puzzled;  but  Arthur  saw  in  his  face  the 
expression  of  the  hidden  joy  which  he  had  learned 
to  know,  and  only  wondered  he  had  never  noticed 
papa  have  that  look  before.  Little  he  dreamed 


56  CHILDREN   OF  THE   GREAT  KING. 

that  the  Lord  of  glory  had  made  use  of  the 
words  spoken  by  him  and  Ada  to  rouse  from  a 
spiritual  torpor  the  soul  of  one  so  dear  to  them ; 
thus  out  of  the  mouths  of  babes  perfecting  his 
praise. 


CHILDREN   OF  THE   GREAT   KING,  57 


CHAPTER  VH. 

"  Time  passed  on ;  but  not  with  time 
Did  thoughts  of  Thee  and  Thine  depart ; 

The  lesson  of  forgetfulness 
"Was  what  I  could  not  teach  my  heart." 

THE  discipline  in  the  school-room  of  Wil- 
loughby  House,  under  the  rule  of  Miss  Manley, 
had  never  been  of  a  strict  description,  Frances 
and  Arthur  having  been  accustomed  to  do  pretty 
much  as  they  pleased;  the  boy  studying,  it  is 
true,  but  only  because  he  liked  to  do  so,  and 
when  he  was  inclined  for  it;  Frances  doing  so 
only  in  order  to  be  able  to  answer  the  questions 
put  to  her  when  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Willoughby  made 
their  weekly  examination. 

Miss  Manley  was  a  highly  educated,  gentle- 
minded  Christian  lady,  but  totally  unfitted,  by 
her  want  of  firmness,  for  enforcing  her  authority 
as  a  governess  on  any  child  inclined  to  dispute 
it.  Conscientiously  desirous  of  performing  her 
duty,  Frances's  carelessness  and  Arthur's  fits  of 
absent  dreaminess  tried  her  sorely,  while  her 


58  CHILDREN    OF  THE   GREAT   KING. 

(shrinking  disposition  made  her  averse  to  complain 
to  Mrs.  Willoughby. 

Ada's  presence  from  the  first  proved  an  im- 
mense advantage ;  her  steady  application  to  her 
lessons,  and  her  obedience  to  orders,  were  a  great 
assistance  to  the  governess.  Abashed  by  her  ex- 
ample, Frances  (in  spite  of  rallying  her  cousin  on 
her  quiet  ways)  gave  up  some  of  her  flightiness, 
and  applied  herself  to  her  books  more  steadily; 
while  Arthur,  at  first  stimulated  by  the  sight  of 
Ada's  industry,  and  afterward  from  higher  mo- 
tives, was  now  roused  from  his  dreams,  and  ex- 
erted himself,  not  as  formerly,  in  learning  those 
lessons  only  which  pleased  himself,  but  also  in 
preparing  those  more  distasteful  to  him. 

With  joy  Miss  Manley  soon  saw  the  simple, 
trusting  faith  which  Ada  possessed.  Love  to  her 
Saviour  God  and  submission  to  his  will  filled  her 
own  heart ;  but  she  was  one  of  his  hidden  ones, 
whose  timid  temperament  hindered  her  from 
speaking  to  others,  as  she  often  longed  to  do,  of 
Him  whom  her  soul  loved.  But  her  life  spoke ; 
and  a  widowed  mother  and  young  brother  in  her 
London  home,  knowing  how  much  she  had  sacri- 
ficed for  their  sakes,  never  breathed  her  name 
without  a  blessing,  never  read  her  loving  letters, 


CHILDREN   OF  THE   GREAT   KING.  59 

filled  as  they  were  with  the  spirit  of  the  Master 
she  served,  without  having  their  thoughts  raised 
heavenward,  and  feeling  that  the  Lord  was  in- 
deed an  all-sufficient  .help  to  those  who  trusted 
in  him. 

"  Ada,  don't  you  hate  commonplace  people  ? " 
asked  Frances  one  day  as  she  and  her  cousin  sat 
alone  at  work;  "people,  you  know,  who  just  go 
on  day  by  day,  always  doing  the  same  thing,  and 
yet  not  apparently  disliking  it,  never  caring  much 
about  anything,  incapable  of  either  liking  or  hat- 
ing; just  humdrum  people,  without  an  idea  be- 
yond the  duty  of  the  present  hour,  who  can  do 
nothing  grand  or  heroic;  people,  in  short,  like 
Miss  Manley,  well  enough  in  her  way,  but,  as 
Lucy  Roscoe  said,  (the  week  she  spent  here,)  as 
uninteresting  as  those  stupid  zoophytes  that 
Arthur  talks  about,  that  are  rooted  to  one  spot, 
and  belong  half  to  the  animal,  half  to  the  vegeta- 
ble kingdom." 

Ada  looked  up,  perfectly  amazed  at  her  curious 
way  of  talking.  "  O,  Frances,  indeed  Miss  Man- 
ley  is  not  at  all  commonplace.  Think  how  smart 
she  is.  Don't  you  remember  uncle  said  the  other 
day  that  he  knew  few  ladies  who  had  read  so 
much  and  so  thoughtfully  as  Miss  Manley?  As 


60  CHILDREN   OF  THE   GREAT   KING. 

to  her  doing  anything  grand  or  heroic,- 1  don't 
know  exactly  what  you  mean  by  that.  I  think  it 
is  a  very  grand  thing  to  be  able  to  do  what  is 
right,  as  she  does,  and  she  is  always  so  kind  and 
patient." 

"There  now,  Ada,  that  will  do;  I  forgot  you 
always  sing  Miss  Mauley's  praises,  and,  as  to  her 
being  patient,  that  is  just  the  thing  I  dislike  the 
most.  If  she  were  not  that,  if  one  could  rouse 
her  into  a  fury,  I  would  like  it  ten  times  better 
than  that  martyr  air  she  puts  on  when  I  do  all  I 
can  to  provoke  her.  Yes,  I  would  like  to  have  a 
governess  who  was  a  heroine  of  some  sort,  and 
then,  you  know,  I  could  respect  her." 

A  heroine !  Well,  Miss  Manley  would  certainly 
have  disdained  any  right  to  such  a  title;  but 
there  were  some  who,  knowing  the  story  of  her 
life,  thought  her  more  worthy  of  the  name  than 
many  who  have  earned  it.  Once,  in  the  country 
town  where  Mr.  Manley  was  the  wealthy  flourish- 
ing banker,  the  favorite  topic  for  a  whole  week 
was  the  approaching  marriage  of  his  only  daugh- 
ter to  the  second  son  of  a  gentleman  of  property 
in  the  neighborhood,  a  young  officer  in  the  army. 
Some  wondered  th^at  Mr.  Manley  allowed  his 
pretty  daughter  to  make  such  a  match,  as  the 


CHILDREN"   OF  THE   GREAT  KING.  61 

world  said  Captain  Ainsworth  possessed  nothing 
save  his  pay,  and  pretty  Mary  Manley  might  at 
least  have  made  a  wealthier  marriage.  But  in- 
stead of  a  marriage  came  death:  From  house  to 
house  sped  the  sad  news,  Mr.  Manley  was  dead; 
suddenly,  very  suddenly,  from  what  cause  it  was 
scarcely  known,  only  it  was  whispered  he  had 
been  thrown  into  a  fearful  state  of  agitation  by 
the  receipt  of  a  letter. 

Reports  spread ;  a  panic  was  raised ;  a  run  on 
the  bank  feared ;  but  confidence  was  restored  by 
the  open  declaration  of  the  Manleys'  solicitor,  that, 
though  he  grieved  to  say  Mr.  Manley's  own  for- 
tune had  been  completely  lost  through  the  failure 
of  an  unfortunate  speculation,  the  bank  was  safe. 
His  late  friend,  imprudent  as  he  had  been  in  thus 
venturing  his  own  fortune,  was  not  one  to  have 
tampered  with  the  money  intrusted  to  his  care. 

That  the  marriage  was  postponed  was  a  matter 
of  course ;  but  as  a  few  weeks  passed  on,  rumor, 
with  its  busy  tongue,  said  it  was  broken  off,  and, 
not  content  with  stating  facts,  added  as  the  cause, 
that,  Mary  Manley's  fortune  having  disappeared, 
Captain  Ainsworth's  love  had  grown  cold,  and  he 
had  broken  off  the  match. 

But  rumor  in  this  matter,  as  in  many  others, 


62  CHILDREN  OF  THE  GREAT  KING. 

spoke  falsely.  The  marriage  was  broken  off,  but 
from  no  mercenary  motives  on.  Captain  Ains- 
worth's  part.  Willingly  would  he  have  carried 
it  out,  and  borne  off  his  bride  from  the  poverty 
which  was  now  her  lot ;  but  Mary — how  could 
she  bear  to  leave  her  mother  unprovided  for,  and 
her  young  brother  also,  who  had  just  begun  to 
study  for  a  doctor  ?  A  small  house  in  the  sub- 
urbs of  London  and  $400  a  year  was  all  that  was 
left  to  the  widow  and  children,  once  accustomed 
to  every  comfort.  Mary  hesitated  not,  fondly  as 
she  loved  Herbert  Ainsworth ;  her  love  for  him 
must  be  subordinated  to  her  duty  to  her  parent, 
She  determined  for  some  years  to  go  as  governess, 
and  thus  enable  her  brother  to  finish  his  course  at 
college;  and  then,  but  not  till  then,  she  felt, 
when  he  was  able  to  provide  for  himself  and  his 
mother,  that  she  might  become  the  wife  of  Cap- 
tain Ainsworth. 

She  told  him  her  plans,  but  he  was  too  indig- 
nant to  hear  her  out,  or  listen  to  reason.  If  she 
had  loved  him  as  he  did  her  she  would  never 
have  made  such  a  proposal.  What !  put  off  their 
marriage  till  they  were  both  old  people?  Not 
he  indeed ;  six  months  he  would  wait,  out  of 
respect  to  her  father's  memory,  but  not  a  day 


CHILDREN   OF  THE   GREAT  KING.  63 

longer.  JECe  allow  his  Mary  to  go  as  a  governess ; 
never ! 

Calmly  Mary  stood  her  ground:  too  strongly 
her  own  wishes  were,  identical  with  his  ;  but  she 
was  a  servant  of  the  Great  King,  and,she  must  do 
that  wrhich  his  law  and  her  own  conscience  told 
her  was  right.  Let  the  consequences  be  what 
they  might,  she  saw  the  path  she  ought  to  pursue, 
and  would  not  be  turned  aside.  In  vain  she  re- 
minded Herbert  that  in  four  years  he  would  only 
be  twenty-seven,  she  scarce  twenty-two ;  not  so 
very  old  surely,  and  by  that  time  Frank's  college 
expenses  would  be  over,  and  then  she  would  feel 
free  to  marry. 

But  reasoning  and  remonstrances  were  alike  in 
vain ;  and  with  a  soreness  of  heart  not  to  be  de- 
scribed, she,  taking  off  her  ring  of  engagement, 
told  Herbert  that  from  henceforth  he  was  free, 
but  she  must  follow  the  path  of  duty.  He  list- 
ened to  her  in  a  passion  too  great  for  words, 
bowed  coldly,  thanked  her  for  setting  him  free, 
and,  without  vouchsafing  her  another  word,  shook 
hands  and  parted. 

Not  a  heroine !  Frances  Willoughby,  could 
you  have  seen  Mary  Manley  in  the  night  hours 
for  long  weeks  after  that  day,  and  have  realized, 


64  CHILDREN  OF  THE   GREAT  KING. 

even  in  the  slightest  degree,  her  mental  agony, 
even  you  would  ever  after  have  ceased  to  look 
with  contempt  on  your  gentle  governess,  and 
allowed  her  sacrifice  to  he  one  deserving  of  the 
name ! 

Bitterly  did  mother  and  brother  feel  that  they 
should,  however  unwillingly,  have  been  the  cause 
of  Mary's  trouble.  But  she  knew  she  had  chosen 
the  best  way ;  she  had  implored  the  guidance  of 
the  Lord,  and  sought  his  counsel  about  the  mat- 
ter, and  so  she  knew  all  would  be  well.  Often 
she  said  to  herself,  "  By  and  by  I  shall  feel  better ; 
my  heart  will  surely  not  always  ache  thus. 
When  I  am  settled  as  a  governess,  and  must  give 
my  attention  to  other  things,  it  will  cease  to  be 
so."  And  three  years  she  had  now  been  in  Mr. 
Willoughby's  family,  and,  save  in  the  one  fault  of 
strict  discipline,  she  had  fulfilled  all  her  duties. 

Yet  she  had  to  confess  her  heart  ached  still ; 
and  whenever  she  heard  the  name  of  Ainsworth, 
a  great  sickness  came  over  her  from  some  unex- 
plained cause.  She  heard  Mr.  Willoughby  read 
aloud  the  name  of  Herbert  Ainsworth's  regiment 

"N. 

as  one  of  those  ordered  to  the  seat  of  war,  and  the 
color  suddenly  left  her  cheek,  and  a  strange  rush- 
ing was  in  her  ears;  but  she  fainted  not.  She 


CHILDREN   OF  THE   GREAT   KIXG.  65 

said  to  herself,  Herbert  was  nothing  to  her,  noth- 
ing. Most  likely  he  was  married  by  this  time, 
"  only,  you  know,  one  can't  help  feeling  anxious 
about  an  old  friend."  No  one  had  observed  her 
paleness,  so  no  remark  was  made  ;  none  knew  her 
sorrow;  her  own  sore  and  her  own  grief,  like 
those  of  many  another,  were  known  only  to  her- 
self and  to  the  Great  King,  who,  though  he  in- 
habiteth  eternity,  "knoweth  the  hearts  of  the 
children  of  men,"  and  bindeth  up  the  broken 
spirit. 

That  night  as  Miss  Manley  knelt  in  prayer  she 
realized,  as  she  had  never  fully  done  before,  the 
privilege  of  being  not  only  permitted,  but  en- 
treated to  cast  all  her  care  upon  the  Lord,  for  he 
careth  for  her. 


66  CHILDEEN  OF  THE  GREAT  KING. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

Whosoever  will  come  after  me,  let  him  deny  himself,  and  take 
up  his  cross  and  follow  me. — MARK  viii,  84. 

THE  feelings  which  had  stirred  Mr.  Willough- 
by's  heart  on  that  Sabbath  we  have  written  of 
were  no  mere  evanescent  ones,  but  the  work  of 
the  Holy  Spirit  within  him. 

He  was  as  a  man  who  woke  up  suddenly  and 
found  that  he  had  been  sleeping  when  he  should 
have  been  journeying  on  important  business  to  a 
far-off  town,  and  who  determined  to  make  up  for 
lost  time  by  extra  speed.  His  whole  heart  was 
yielded  up  to  his  God,  and  from  that  time  his  one 
resolve  was,  "  As  for  me  and  my  house,  we  will 
serve  the  Lord." 

Family  worship  had  never  been  neglected,  sa- 
cred things  never  despised  there ;  but  now  they 
were  pervaded  with  a  new  spirit — no  formal  ut- 
terances merely,  but  the  glowing  expressions  of  a 
loving  heart.  Servants  and  children  alike  noticed 
the  change.  Ada  and  Arthur,  children-like,  did 
not  seek  to  find  out  a  reason  for  the  change,  only 


CHILDREN   OF  THE   GREAT   KING.  67 

they  felt  they  could  talk  to  Mr.  Willoughby  now 
as  they  once  could  not. 

"Papa  knows  so  well  what  one  feels,"  said 
Arthur,  "and  reads  "one's  very  thoughts  even 
when  you  would  rather  he  did  not ;  and,  do  you 
know,  he  finds  it  is  not  always  easy  to  do  what  is 
right,  just  as  we  feel.  To-day,  when  I  had  finished 
the  Latin  lesson  he  always  gives  me,  he  looked 
out,  and  said  he  should  go  now  for  a  ride,  the  day 
was  so  beautiful ;  and  he  would  perhaps  call  at 
Mr.  Marshman's,  and  make  arrangements  about 
the  picnic  we  are  to  have  next  week.  Well,  just 
then  William  the  butler  came  in  with  a  whole  lot 
of  papers  in  his  hand,  and  said  that  these  were 
the  estimates  for  the  new  cottages  papa  is  build- 
ing near  the  large  meadow,  and  Mr.  Sandford 
would  be  obliged  by  his  letting  him  know  as  soon 
as  convenient  if  they  pleased  him.  Papa  looked 
vexed,  but  said,  '  Very  well,  he  would  see  about 
them,'  stood  a  moment  undecided,  then,  taking 
up  the  papers  in  his  hand,  sat  down  at  his  desk. 
'  Aint  you  going  to  ride,  papa  ? '  I  said.  '  No,' 
he  answered,  *  I  cannot  now,  for  these  papers. will 
occupy  me  a  long  time,  and  you  know  I  cannot 
put  them  off  till  the  evening,  as  we  have  friends 

dining  with  us,  and  I  must  settle  about  them  to- 

5 


68  CHILDREN   OF  THE  GREAT  KING. 

day.  I  would  far  rather  have  taken  the  ride, 
Arthur,  but  "duty  before  pleasure;"  and  you. 
know  we  are  not  put  into  this  world  to  do  only 
those  things  which  please  ourselves.  The  Great 
King  tells  us  to  deny  ourselves ;  and  he  tells  us 
in  his  word,  to  be  "  not  slothful  in  business,  fer- 
vent in  spirit,  serving  the  Lord."  So  you  see  the 
ride  must  wait,  and  these  accounts  be  done,  and 
the  sooner  the  better.  So,  my  boy,  you  must  go 
for  the  present.' 

"  And,  Ada,  ever  since,"  continued  Arthur,  "  I 
have  been  thinking  how  strange  it  is  that  papa  also 
has  to  do  things  he  does  not  like,  just  like  us  chil- 
dren ;  but  then  he  does  it  always  to  please  the  Great 
King.  I  wish  I  could  do  that  too,  Ada,  always ; 
but  it  is  sometimes  so  hard  to  do — to  have  to  leave 
off  reading  some  curious  story,  or  beautiful  poem, 
just  because  the  school-bell  rings ;  or  to  stop  ar- 
ranging my  case  of  butterflies  because  Frances 
says,  '  O,  Arthur,  come  and  see  this ! '  or,  do  you 
know  to-day  I  felt  just  the  same  when  papa  called 
mo  to  come  to  my  Latin  lesson  five  minutes  earlier 
than  usual.  These  are  the  sorts  of  things  I  feel  so 
wrong  about,  and  at  the  time  I  forget  to  ask  the 
Great  King  to  help  me  to  do  right.  Ada,  do  you 
feel  so?" 


CHILDREN   OF  THE   GREAT  KING.  69 

"  Yes,"  Ada  told  him,  "  often,  often ;"  and  then 
they  began  to  wonder  why  people  felt  it  so  diffi- 
cult to  do  the  right  thing.  "  O,  if  Eve  had  not 
taken  the  apple,  then,  you  know,  no  one  would 
ever  have  wished  to  do  wrong." 

All  unconsciously  they  were  verging  to  a  sub- 
ject which  has  puzzled  the  heads  of  so-called  wise 
men  for  ages — the  permission  of  evil.  Well  for 
the  children,  who  truly  were  getting  beyond  their 
depth,  that  the  school-bell  rung;  and,  finding  it 
better  to  obey  than  reason,  they  ran  off.  And  it 
would  be  well  for  the  so-called  wise  men  if,  leav- 
ing fruitless  speculations,  they  listened  to  the  voice 
of  Him  who  cannot  lie,  who  has  promised  that 
"what  we  know  not  now,  we  shall  know  here- 
after." 

The  terror  Mr.  Willoughby  had  taken  about  his 
boy's  health  had  not  altogether  subsided.  There 
was  an  increased  brightness  in  his  eye,  a  more  deli- 
cate color  in  his  cheeks,  and  a  marked  want  of 
strength.  Anxiously  did  both  father  and  mother 
watch  these  symptoms,  and  at  once  consulted  the 
doctor  who  had  attended  him  from  his  birth.  He 
examined  the  boy,  but  said  little,  except  that  there 
was  no  cause  for  present  alarm ;  indeed,  he  thought 
the  child  no  worse  than  usual ;  desired  him  to  be 


70  CHILDREN   OF  THE   GREAT   KING. 

kept  as  much  as  possible  in  the  open  air,  but  not 
allowed  to  overtire  himself;  not  to  overwoi-k  him 
at  his  lessons ;  at  the  same  time  by  no  means  to 
let  him  give  them  up,  as  they  occupied  his  mind, 
which  inclined  too  much  to  prey  on  itself;  but 
with  care  he  saw  no  cause  for  present  anxiety. 

Mrs.  Willoughby  seemed  relieved  by  the  doc- 
tor's opinion ;  but  his  father  had  caught  a  strong 
accent  on  the  word  "  present,"  and  a  cloud  of  anx- 
iety rested  on  his  heart.  Once  such  a  cloud  would 
have  bowed  him  to  the  ground  in  despair;  now  it 
led  him  to  the  mercy-seat,  to  ask  for  grace  to  help 
in  time  of  need,  for  strength  to  learn  in  all  things 
to  say,  "  Thy  will,  not  mine,  be  done." 

He  now  kept  a  greater  oversight  of  the  children 
than  he  had  formerly  done,  instructing  the  three 
in  Bible  lessons  every  day,  opening  up  the  Scrip- 
tures to  them.  Frances  took  pleasure  in  these  les- 
sons because  she  liked  to  be  taught  by  her  papa; 
the  others,  because  they  learned  more  to  know  the 
will  of  the  Great  King. 

One  day  they  read  of  Josiah,  the  young  king  of 
Judah,  son  of  Amon,  how  he  did  that  which  was 
right  in  the  sight  of  the  Lord,  and  declined  not  to 
the  right  hand  nor  to  the  left.  "  Notice,  children," 
said  Mr.  Willoughby,  "  while  he  was  yet  young 


CHILDREN   OF  THE   GREAT   KING.  71 

he  began  to  seek  after  God,  and  made  all  the  idols 
and  the  carved  images  be  removed,  that  God  might 
reign  alone ;  and  he  repaired  the  house  of  the  Lord, 
and  made  the  words  of  the  law,  which  the  Great 
King  had  imparted  to  Moses,  and  which  had  long 
lain  neglected,  be  read  aloud  to  all  the  people ; 
and  he  himself,  going  up  to  the  house  of  God,  and 
standing  before  the  people,  declared,  before  the 
Lord,  that  his  desire  was  to  keep  his  command- 
ments and  his  statutes  with  his  whole  heart,  and 
to  do  the  things  which  were  written  in  the  Book." 

Arthur  listened  eagerly  to  his  father's  words, 
and,  waiting  till  the  others  had  gone  away,  begged 
him  to  tell  him  what  he  could  do  for  God.  "  You 
know,  papa,  there  are  no  idols  here  that  I  can 
throw  down,  no  church  I  can  repair,  no  people  I 
can  read  the  Bible  to  who  know  it  not." 

"  No  idols  here,  you  say,  Arthur  ?  What  if  I 
were  to  tell  you  there  are,  and  that  I  have  noticed 
several  times  there  is  one  you  worship  and  obey  ?  " 

"  Me,  papa,  obey  an  idol !     O  no,  no."  * 

"  Yes,  Arthur,  the  idol  you  can,  by  God's  help, 
cast  down,  is  Self.  Too  often  I  see  you  obey  its 
voice  rather  than  that  of  the  Great  King.  Only  on 
Saturday  last  I  heard  Claude  ask  you  three  times 
over,  when  you  were  looking  over  the  large  book 


72  CHILDREN  OF  THE  GREAT  KING. 

of  prints,  to  come  out  and  have  a  game  with  him ; 
and  your  answer  was,  '  Presently,  when  I  am  tired 
of  this  book,  but  not  now.' " 

"Yes,  papa,  I  remember;  Claude  was  vexed, 
and  said  he  had  promised  Frances  and  Ada  to  walk 
with  them  in  a  short  time,  and  unless  I  could  come 
at  once  we  could  not  have  the  game ;  and  I  said, 
'  Well,  it  could  wait  till  some  other  time.'  But 
that  was  a  very  small  thing,  papa ;  surely  that  was 
not  obeying  the  commands  of  Self;  that  could  not 
be  like  worshiping  an  idol." 

"First  tell  me  what  is  an  idol,"  said  Mr.  Wil- 
loughby. 

"  O,  anything  that  we  put  in  the  place  of  God, 
and  care  more  for  than  we  do  for  him ;  you  told 
us  so  the  other  day." 

"  Well,  Arthur,  how  are  we  to  show  our  love  to 
God  save  by  doing  his  commands?  What  says 
he  in  his  word?  '  Be  ye  kind  one  to  another,  ten- 
derhearted, forgiving  one  another,  even  as  God 
fj?r  Christ's  sake  hath  forgiven  you.'  (Eph.  iv,  32.) 
Please"  not  yourself;  even  Christ  pleased  not  him- 
self. But  the  idol  Self  tells  you  only  to  do  those 
things  which  are  agreeable  and  pleasant  to  you, 
and  not  to  care  about  the  pleasures  of  others  at  all. 
JSTow,  when  you  refused  Claude's  simple  request 


CHILDREN   OF  THE   GREAT   KING.  73 

whom  did  you  obey,  the  Great  King  or  Self? 
"Well,  if  you  would  do  what  is  pleasing  to  the 
Lord,  strive  to  cast  down  that  idol  within  your 
heart,  that  the  Holy -Spirit  may  dwell  there  alone. 
In,  the  strength  of  the  Lord  Josiah  did  all  things, 
and  it  is  by  his  help  alone  that  you  can  do  so  also. 
Self,  my  boy,  is  a  great  stumbling-stone  in  your 
way  to  the  palace  of  the  Great  King.  Ask  the 
Guide  who  holds  your  hand,  even  Jesus,  to  lift 
.  you  right  over  it,  so  that  you  fall  not." 

Mr.  Willoughby  spoke  very  earnestly,  for  he 
saw  that  a  great  fault  in  Arthur's  character  was 
indulging  self.  Made  an  object  of  care  and  solici- 
tude from  infancy,  this  trait  in  his  character  was 
fostered  and  increased,  and,  but  for  the  grace  of 
God,  would  spread  and  hinder  his  heavenward  way. 

Arthur  owned  the  truth  of  his  father's  words ; 
and  as  he  was,  not  in  word  only,  but  in  reality, 
seeking  to  walk  in  the  narrow  way,  he  became 
most  desirous  to  conquer  self,  to  be  a  true  follower 
of  Him  who  came  into  the  world  not  to  be  minis- 
tered unto,  but  to  minister. 

The  children  of  the  Great  King  of  whom  we 
write  were  not  perfect ;  but  becoming  changed,  as 
it  were,  from  glory  to  glory,  pressing  on  to  the 
kingdom. 


74  CHILDREN  OF  THE  GREAT  KING. 


CHAPTER  IX. 

"  Let  those  refuse  to  sing 

Who  never  knew  our  God, 
But  servants  of  the  heavenly  King 

Should  speak  their  joys  abroad. 
The  hill  of  Zion  yields 

A  thousand  sacred  sweets, 
Before  we  reach  the  heavenly  fields, 

Or  walk  the  golden  streets." 

"  ISN'T  this  a  glorious  morning  for  our  picnic, 
Miss  Manley?"  were  the  words  which  greeted 
that  lady's  ears  as  she  entered  the  school-room 
one  Saturday  morning,  and  found  Frances,  Ada, 
Arthur,  and  Claude  preparing  already  for  the 
long-talked  of  picnic. 

They  were  wild  with  delight.  Several  friends 
were  to  join  them — the  Mitford  girls  from  Ashton 
Park,  as  well  as  Mr.  Marshman  and  his  pupils. 
Papa  and  mamma  and  Miss  Manley  were  to  ac- 
company them ;  and  after  a  long  drive  they  were 
to  climb  up  a  hill,  and  have  dinner  under  some 
fine  old  trees,  from  which  spot  one  of  the  finest 
views  of  the  neighboring  country  was  to  be  had. 
Claude  and  Arthur  had  armed  themselves  with 


CHILDREN   OF  THE   GREAT   KING.  75 

small  hammers  and  tin  cases  to  get  specimens  of 
stones,  and  particularly  of  the  bright  pink  marble 
which  abounds  in  these  parts ;  and  the  girls  also 
carried  small  botanical  cases,  hoping  to  collect 
wild  flowers,  and  perhaps  get  some  new  kind  of 
fern  for  the  fernery. 

By  ten  o'clock  the  whole  party  had  assembled ; 
the  carriage  and  little  wagon  were  at  the  door ; 
and,  after  a  large  amount  of  bustle  and  commo- 
tion, Mr.  Willoughby  succeeded  in  getting  them 
all  seated  and  fairly  started,  all  declaring  loudly 
it  was  a  shame  not  to  let  dear  little  Minnie  come 
also ;  but  mamma  would  by  no  means  consent  to 
such  a  proposal,  telling  them  Minnie  would  soon 
get  wearied  and  wish  to  go  home. 

On  they  drove  through  shady  lanes,  past  ver- 
dant meadows  and  rich  corn-fields,  where  the 
reapers  were  busy  at  work,  pausing  only  a  mo- 
ment as  the  party  passed  by,  to  gaze  at  the 
bright,  happy  young  faces,  and,  it  may  be,  heave 
a  sigh  that  their  own  lot  was  one  of  toil ;  but  for 
all  that  they  wished  in  their  hearts  that  the  young 
people  might  have  a  pleasant  day.  Presently  the 
road  passed  along  the  foot  of  a  beautifully  wooded 
hill,  the  trees  overshadowing  the  carriages  as  they 
passed.  A  little  further  on  and  the  sea,  sparkling 


76  CHILDREN  OF  THE   GREAT   KING. 

under  the  rays  of  an  August  sun,  burst  on  their 
sight. 

Where  is  the  child  who  exults  not  at  the  sight 
of  the  sea,  wild^  free,  and  boundless,  coming  from 
where  they  know  not,  leading  to  lands  unknown  ? 
Or  is  it  that  in  its  ever  changing,  restless  waves 
they  feel  a  response  to  the  ever  surging  emotions 
of  their  own  young  hearts  ? 

But  the  road  once  more  strikes  inland ;  the 
party  alight  at  an  old-fashioned  farm-house,  and, 
leaving  the  horses  to  be  put  up,  proceed  to 
clamber  up  a  neighboring  hill.  The  elders  of  the 
party  proceed  leisurely,  and  at  first  try  to  keep  a 
sort  of  order  among  the  youngsters ;  but  finding 
this  impossible,  resign  the  task  with  a  smile,  only 
insisting  that  the  young  people  wait  at  the  top  till 
they  join  them. 

Promising  to  do  so,  they  set  off,  Frances  and 
Ada  taking  the  lead  with  the  girls,  and  Claude 
with  the  boys.  They  agreed  that  they  would  go 
straight  up  to  the  top  of  the  hill,  and  then  set 
some  game  a-going ;  and  if  going  straight  up 
meant  darting  aside  first  to  one  part,  then  to  an- 
other, in  search  of  some  flower  or  insect,  and 
running  always  further  into  the  wood,  because 
some  new  beauty  struck  their  eye,  they  certainly 


CHILDREN  OF  THE   GREAT   KIXG.  77 

accomplished  their  plan.  But  when  they  did  ar- 
rive at  the  top  they  were  rather  surprised  to  find 
that  the  slow  walkers,  as  they  termed  the  older 
division  of  the  party,  had  arrived  before  them, 
having  really  kept  to  the  right  road. 

Mr.  Marshman  taunted  them  with  being  slug- 
gards, and  related  in  a  most  humorous  way  the 
fable  of  the  hare  and  the  tortoise.  The  story  was 
received  with  shouts  of  laughter.  They  had  all 
heard  it  often  before,  but  what  of  that  ?  it  does 
not  take  much  to  make  one  laugh  when  the  heart 
is  gay,  and  one  is  at  a  picnic. 

An  open  part  of  the  hill  was  discovered,  the 
very  place  for  games,  and  there  for  some  time 
they  were  carried  on,  the  boys  jumping,  wrest- 
ling, running  races,  etc.,  the  girls  at  quieter 
plays :  croquet  was  not  yet  become  a  prevailing 
mania,  so  blind  man's  buff,  puss  in  the  corner, 
through  the  needle-eye,  and  the  like,  did  instead. 
Frances,  had  the  Miss  Roscoes  been  there,  might 
have  pronounced  those .  games  decidedly  childish 
,and  slow,  and  rather  have  preferred  to  join  the 
sports  of  the  boys,  as  more  suitable  to  the  tastes 
of  those  young  ladies  who  are  desirous  of  ap- 
proaching as  nearly  as  possible  to  the  other  sex. 
But,  away  from  the  influence  of  her  foolish  cousins, 


78  CHILDKEN   OF  THE   GREAT   KING. 

Frances  was  becoming  more  natural,  and  thor- 
oughly enjoyed  herself. 

The  games  finished,  the  great  sport  was  to  assist 
in  laying  out  the  dinner.  A  beautiful  spot  was 
chosen,  shaded  partly  by  the  trees,  and  yet  open 
enough  to  let  the  eye  wander  over  an  extensive 
view  of  hill  and  dale,  and  the  more  distant  sea. 
Close  by  murmured  a  little  brook,  clear  as  crystal, 
here  dashing  over  its  rocky  bed,  hasting  away  to 
the  ocean.  The  dinner  disappeared  in  some  mar- 
velous way  amid  a  perfect  flow  of  talk  and  laugh- 
ter, drowning  the  song  of  the  larks  that  soared 
overhead,  and  startling  the  wood-pigeons  from 
their  gentle  cooing. 

Then  began  a  vigorous  search  for  wild  flowers, 
ferns,  stones,  and  the  pink  marble,  some  of  which 
was  to  be  found  in  the  neighborhood.  Some  of 
the  children,  accompanied  by  Mr.  Willoughby, 
followed  the  course  of  the  little  river  a  good  way. 
In  some  parts  it  was  very  beautiful,  cutting  out  a 
bed  for  itself  through  rocks  overshadowed  by 
trees,  through  the  varied  green  of  which  quivered- 
the  rays  of  the  sun,  resting  not  till  they  touched 
the  water  and  played  on  its  ripples.  Beautiful 
species  of  ferns  grew  on  the  banks,  and  many 
delicately  tinted  wild  flowers  raised  their  slender 


The    Picnic    P>.r'v. 


CHILDREN   OF   THE   GREAT   KING.  81 

forms  there,  seeming  as  if  they  also  loved  the  wild 
spot ;  and  the  dog-roses  threw  clusters  of  their 
bright-colored  berries  over  the  stream,  as  if  to 
repay  it  for  the  refreshing  moisture  with  which  it 
supplied  their  roots. 

Ada  was  especially  charmed  with  the  beauties 
of  the  place.  All  was  new  to  her,  and  she  fancied 
everything  in  this  wooded  hill  looked  fair  and 
fresh,  as  it  must  have  done  the  very  morning  of 
the  creation,  while  it  still  wore  the  impress  of  the 
Creator's  hand.  She  could  have  loitered  there  for 
ever,  but  a  proposal  was  made  to  leave  the  rivulet 
and  go  elsewhere ;  but  before  they  went,  Claude 
struck  up  (and  was  soon  joined  by  the  voices  of 
the  others)  the  song  of  the  brook  : 

"I  come  from  haunts  of  coot  and  hern, 

I  make  a  sudden  sally ; 
And  sparkle  out  among  the  fern 

To  bicker  down  a  valley. 
By  thirty  hills  I  hurry  down, 

Or  slip  between  the  ridges  ; 
By  twenty  thorps,  a  little  town, 

And  half  a  hundred  bridges." 

The  song  described  so  exactly  the  little  brook 
before  them  that  some  of  the  youngsters  thought 
Claude  had  improvised  it  for  the  occasion,  and  ap- 
plauded accordingly.  The  woods  echoed  back  the 
chorus,  then  let  it  softly  die  away ;  and,  leaving 


82  CHILDREN  OF  THE   GREAT   KING. 

the  little  brook  to  its  accustomed  solitude,  the 
party  started  off  in  another  direction. 

Of  all  the  merry  party  that  day  none  were  more 
BO  than  Claude,  Ada,  and  Arthur;  distinguished 
only  by  a  greater  willingness  to  yield  up  their 
own  wishes  to  the  rest,  by  a  greater  eagerness 
not  to  please  themselves  so  much  as  others.  Mr. 
Marshman  noticed  Ada's  behavior  all  that  day 
closely ;  he  wished  to  judge  for  himself  if  Claude's 
account  of  his  sister  was  a  true  one,  and  if  so,  if 
he  could  find  it  out  by  her  conduct.  For  Claude 
had  told  him  that,  whatever  he  was  himself,  he 
was  quite  sure  Ada  was  a  child  of  the  Great 
King. 

Now  Mr.  Marshman  remembered  that  there  are 
certain  tests  revealed  in  the  will  of  the  King 
whereby  his  children  may  be  known :  these  are 
love,  joy,  peace,  long-suffering,  gentleness,  good- 
ness, meekness,  temperance,  faith ;  and  he  looked 
to  see  some  marks  of  these  in  Ada.  He  was  not 
long  in  doubt :  in  her  gentle  courtesy,  her  willing- 
ness to  help  the  others,  and  her  complete  unselfish- 
ness, he  read  her  right  to  the  title  her  brother  had 
given  her. 

One  little  incident  confirmed  his  opinion.  With 
great  delight  Ada  had  shown  him  a  beautiful  plant 


CHILDREN   OF  THE   GREAT  KING.  83 

of  the  Adiantum  capillus  veneris  fern.  "  I  just 
require  it,"  she  said,  "  to  make  up  my  collection. 
Is  it  not  a  beauty  ?" 

Just  then  Bertha  Mitford  came  running  up. 
"  O,  Ada,  what  a  lucky  girl  you  are,  to  have  got  a 
plant  of  that !  I  would  give  anything  to  get  one, 
for  Charlotte  and  I  have  looked  for  it  for  weeks, 
and  have  not  got  one." 

A  moment  Ada  stood  irresolute,  a  bright  flush 
mantling  her  cheek.  Words  of  the  Great  King 
were  before  her  eyes.  "Be  ye  kind  one  to  an- 
other." The  next  she  was  begging  Bertha  to  ac- 
cept the  fern ;  begging  her  in  such  a  pleasant  way 
that  the  girl  did  not  see  the  giving  it  up  had 
cost  her  a  struggle,  and  she  took  it  with  many 
thanks. 

Mr.  Marshman  had  watched  the  scene,  and  ob- 
served Ada's  mental  struggle.  He  put  his  hand 
kindly  on  her  shoulder,  saying,  "  'A  new  command- 
ment,' said  the  Son  of  the  King,  ere  he  left  the 
earth,  '  I  give  unto  you ;  that  ye  love  one  another, 
as  I  have  loved  you.  By  this  shall  all  men  know 
that  ye  are  my  disciples,  if  ye  have  love  one  to 
another.' " 

Ada  looked  up  smilingly  at  the  words.  "  O, 
but  it  was  such  a  little  thing  to  do,  and  she 


84  CHILDREN   OF   THE   GREAT   KING. 

did  so  wish  it."  Then  she  bounded  off  with  a 
step  light  as  a  young  fawn,  the  brightest  of  the 
bright  young  band. 

Who  dare  say  that  religion  is  a  gloomy  thing ; 
that  the  servants  of  Satan,  who  groan  under  his 
iron  yoke  here,  and  have  in  prospect  nought  but 
endless  misery  hereafter,  are  the  happy  ones,  while 
the  redeemed  children  of  the  King  of  kings,  to 
whom  belong  all  the  cheering  promises  and  the 
certainty  of  never-ending  bliss,  are  to  be  condoled 
with  as  sad  and  melancholy  creatures  ?  Ay,  who 
suggests  such  an  idea,  save  he  who  was  a  liar  from 
the  beginning,  even  the  father  of  lies  ?  Listen  not 
to  him ;  answer  him  in  the  only  language  he  fears, 
the  language  of  the  Great  King ;  tell  him  it  is 
false :  "  The  children  of  Zion  are  joyful  in  their 
King ;"  on  their  banners,  emblazoned  in  letters  of 
gold,  stand  the  words,  "  Rejoicing  in  the  Lord." 
Through  trials  and  sorrows,  through  life,  and 
even  in  the  dark  shadow  of  death,  they,  and 
they  only,  can  say,  "  We  joy  in  God  through 
the  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  through  whom  we  have 
now  received  the  atonement;"  and  the  dark 
valley  passed,  the  river  crossed,  the  city  of 
everlasting  day  entered,  what  hear  we'  there? 
The  voice  of  a  great  multitude  of  redeemed  ones, 


CHILDREN  OF  THE   GREAT   KING.  85 

who  sing,  "  Halleluiah !  the  Lord  God  omnipotent 
reigneth."  Let  us  be  glad  and  rejoice,  and  give 
honor  to  him. 

While  the  party  were  thus  roaming  about,  Ar- 
thur, tired  with  the  day's  unwonted  fatigues,  was 
lying  quietly  by  his  father's  side ;  now  showing ' 
him  the  different  stones  and  beautiful  pieces  of 
marble  he  had  collected,  now  tranquilly  enjoying 
the  lovely  view  before  him,  his  eye  resting  now 
on  the  darkly  wooded  hills,  now  on  the  bright 
blue  sea,  glimpses  of  which  were  caught  here  and 
there  through  the  openings  of  the  trees ;  and  the 
white  sails  of  the  ships,  as  they  glided  past,  glim- 
mered in  the  bright  sunshine.  Close  by  babbled 
the  little  stream ;  a  gentle  breeze  murmured  among 
the  leafy  trees,  and  swept  gently  over  the  long 
grass.  It  was  as  if  nature  were  singing  a  more 
than  usually  sweet  hymn  of  praise.  The  whish, 
whish  of  the  trees ;  the  ripple,  ripple  of  the 
brook ;  the  soft  cooing  of  the  doves ;  and  the 
chirp,  chirp  of  many  of  the  feathered  tribe, 
all  mingled,  and  produced  a  dreary,  slumberous 
feeling. 

Father  and  son  sat  long  in  silence.     At  last  Mr. 
Willoughby  broke  it,  repeating  distinctly  words 

which    the    scene   had    suggested   to   him:    "O 
6 


86  CHILDREN  OF  THE  GREAT  KING. 

Lord  my  God,  thou  art  very  great :  who  cov- 
erest  thyself  with  light  as  with  a  garment ;  who 
stretchest  out  the  heavens  like  a  curtain.  He 
sendeth  the  springs  into  the  valleys,  which  run 
among  the  hills.  They  give  drink  to  every 
beast  in  the  forest ;  by  them  the  fowls  of  heaven 
have  their  habitation,  which  sing  among  the 
branches." 

"  O,  papa,  how  true  all  that  is !"  said  Arthur. 
"  Do  you  know  I  have  just  been  thinking,  although 
that  brook  is  such  a  little  one,  how  useful  it  is. 
Look  how  green  everything  is  that  grows  near  it, 
how  fresh  the  trees  and  flowers  are,  how  the  little 
birds  love  it,  and  how  merry  it  seems.  That,  I 
suppose,  is  because  it  is  never  idle ;  and  yet 
all  the  time  it  is  flowing  on,  on  to  its  eternity, 
the  ocean.  I  wish  I  could  be  like  it,  always 
working  usefully,  always  happy,  yet  never  for- 
getting the  end.  Papa,  say  something  to  me, 
something  of  Milton's.  I  never  weary  of  hearing 
his  poems." 

He  listened  with  delight  as  his  father  repeated 
long  passages  from  "Paradise  Lost."  Nature 
around  them  seemed  fair  as  that  of  paradise,  and 
both  felt  as  if  the  poet  merely  gave  expression  to 
their  own  inner  thoughts. 


CHILDREN  OF  THE  GREAT  KING.  87 

•*  These  are  thy  glorious  works,  Parent  of  good  1 

Almighty !  thine  this  universal  frame, 

Thus  wondrons  fair ;  thyself  how  wondrous  then  I" 

They  were  interrupted  by  Claude,  who,  buoyant 
with  health  and  spirits,  came  dashing  down  upon 
them.  "  Poetizing,  Arthur,  I  declare ;  and  uncle 
too !  Come,  that  is  too  bad,  when  we  are  all  wait- 
ing for  you  to  join  in  a  game.  Come  along,  and 
leave  Milton  for  some  other  time." 

Arthur  rose  quickly,  but  Mr.  Willoughby  stopped 
him.  "No,  Claude,  Arthur  has  had  more  than 
enough  of  fatigue  to-day,  and  had  better  rest  a 
while ;  so  go  off,  and  leave  us  in  peace  to  our 
poetizing,  as  you  call  it." 

Claude's  eye  rested  on  Arthur,  and  his  flushed 
cheek  and  wearied  appearance  showed  him  at  a 
glance  that  his  uncle  was  right ;  and  in  his  impet- 
eous,  kind-hearted  fashion,  he  volunteered  to  stay 
with  him  and  cheer  him  a  bit :  "  Only,  Arthur,  I 
am  not  going  to  quote  Milton  to  you,  for,  to  tell 
you  the  truth,  I  don't  care  much  about  him.  I 
like  poems  aBout  battles.  To  be  sure,  there  are 
battles  in  '  Paradise  Lost '  too,  but  not  the  kind  I 
care  about.  Do  you  know  Macaulay's  'Lays?' 
they  are  splendid.  Here  goes  for  his  Henry  of 
Navarre!"  And,  standing  up,  he  declaimed  it 


88  CHILDREN  OF  THE  GREAT  KING. 

with  great  spirit,  ending  with  the  declaration, 
"  That's  what  I  call  something  of  a  poem ;  that  is 
the  kind  of  soldier  I  mean  to  be."  Then,  without 
waiting  for  further  remarks,  he  ran  off,  suddenly 
remembering  he  had  promised  the  others  to  come 
back  immediately. 

Mr.  Willoughby  and  Arthur  looked  after  him, 
laughing  at  his  abrupt  departure.  "Papa,"  said 
Arthur,  "  is  he  not  a  splendid  fellow  ?  and  wont 
he  make  a  famous  soldier  ?" 

"  Yes,  he  certainly  is  a  fine  boy,  and  has  a  true 
soldier  spirit.  I  wish  his  father  could  have  seen 
him  now.  I  am  glad  you  and  your  cousins  get  on 
so  well,  Arthur ;  you  love  them  both,  don't  you  ?" 

"Yes,  papa,  that  I  do.  Ada  is  so  good  and 
kind,  and  pretty  too ;  and  Claude — you  don't 
know  how  I  admire  him.  I  believe  he'll  be  a  hero 
Borne  day.  I  never  read  of  Leonidas,  Bonaparte, 
or  the  Duke  of  Wellington,  without  thinking 
Claude  will  be  like  some  of  these." 

Mr.  Willoughby  smiled  at  the  different  sorts  of 
men  Arthur  had  fixed  upon  for  Claude  to  resemble, 
but  was  pleased  to  hear  his  boy  speak  so  fondly  of 
his  cousin. 

The  day  was  indeed  a  happy  one  to  all  parties, 
one  of  those  days  to  be  long  remembered  with 


CHILDREN  OF  THE   GREAT  KING.  89 

pleasure,  and  looked  back  upon  when  the  cares 
and  trials  of  life  are  pressing  on  the  hearts  so 
young  and  light  now.;  and,  perchance,  with  the 
very  remembrance  thereof,  would  spring  up  softer 
feelings  and  holier  thoughts,  redolent  of  leafy  trees, 
silvery  streams,  flowers,  birds,  summer  sunshine, 
and  often  also  of  loved  ones  who  since  that  day 
have  fallen  asleep  in  Jesus. 

Just  as  the  party  were  leaving  the  hill  prepara- 
tory to  getting  into  the  carriages  on  the  way  home, 
Mr.  Marshman  put  into  Ada's  hand  a  plant  of  the 
fern  she  had  given  to  Bertha  Mitford.  "I  was 
determined  to  find  one,"  he  said  jokingly,  "  in 
order  that  you  might  not  think  yourself  the  only 
successful  searcher  of  the  party.  And  see,  here  it 
is  for  you ;  you  can  call  it  the  Marshman  hair  fern, 
if  you  like,  in  remembrance  of  me.  Long  ago  a 
decoction  used  to  be  made  from  its  juice,  called 
capillaire,  which,  it  was  said,  made  ladies'  hair 
beautiful." 

Ada's  look  thanked  him  more  than  her  words-, 
and  she  drove  home,  holding  her  treasure  with  no 
small  delight. 

The  sun  was  far  down  in  the  west  when  the 
picnic  party  arrived  at  Willoughby  House,  all 
pleased  and  happy,  but  willing,  ere  the  night  was 


90  CHILDREN  OF  THE   GREAT  KING. 

far  advanced,  to  seek  their  couches,  and  go  over 
the  pleasures  of  the  day  in"  dreams. 

Long  may  they  continue  to  find  happiness  in 
such  simple  joys,  long  retain  the  childlike  spirit 
which  seeks  and  finds  amid  the  scenes  of  nature 
the  purest  pleasure ! 


CHILDREN   OF  THE   GREAT   KING.  91 


CHAPTER  X. 

He  that  dwelleth  in  the  secret  place  of  the  Most  High  shall 
abide  under  the  shadow  of  the  Almighty. — PSA.  xci,  1. 

WHILE  the  Percy  children  were  passing  their 
time  thus  quietly  in  their  pleasant  Devonshire 
home,  far  other  were  the  scenes  in  which  their 
father  mingled. 

The  English  and  French  armies  were  still  await- 
ing at  Varna  the  command  to  set  out  for  the 
Crimea,  and  commence  the  attack  on  the  strongly 
fortified  town  of  Sebastopol.  Somewhat  impa- 
tiently they  waited ;  all  longed  for  action,  many 
chafed  under  the  delay;  but  as  long  as  possible 
the  order  was  kept  back.  While  waiting  this, 
cholera  attacked  first  the  French  army,  afterward 
the  English :  fearful  was  the  loss  of  life.  Rumors, 
perhaps  exaggerated,  reached  our  country,  and 
penetrated  to  the  homes  of  Devon,  where  many  a 
house,  like  other  counties  in  the  kingdom,  pos- 
sessed dear  ones  in  that  army. 

A  letter  from  Colonel  Percy  to  his  children  told 
the  real  facts  of  the  case,  which,  although  less 


92  CHILDREN   OF  THE   GREAT  KING. 

fearful  than  common  report,  were  still  bad  enough. 
An  extract  from  his  letter  we  give  : 

"  DEABEST  CHILDREN, — In  spite  of  many  press- 
ing duties,  I  seize  one  quiet  moment  to  write  to 
you.  Ere  this  time  you  have  heard  what  devasta- 
tion cholera  is  making  both  in  our  army  and  that 
of  the  French.  The  real  state  of  things  is  bad 
enough,  but  newspaper  reports  will  make  them 
worse ;  so  I  caution  you  not  to  believe  all  you 
hear.  Well  do  I  know  how  anxious  you  will  be 
to  hear  of  my  safety ;  and,  thank  God,  I  am  in  as 
good  health  as  I  have  ever  been  in  my  life,  though 
cast  down,  it  is  true,  by  the  death  and  illness  of 
many  loved  comrades,  and  by  the  sufferings 
around. 

"  Solemn  feeling,  that  in  the  very  midst  of  life 
we  are  in  death !  But  yet,  dear  ones,  I  am  able 
to  say  of  the  Great  King,  'He  is  my  refuge,  and 
my  fortress;  my  God,  in  him  will  I  trust.'  Under 
the  cover  of  his  wings  I  am  not  afraid  for  the 
pestilence  that  walketh  in  darkness,  nor  for  the 
destruction  that  wasteth  at  noonday.  To  live 
amid  such  scenes,  and  have  no  abiding  trust  in 
God,  no  assurance  of  interest  in  Christ,  were  sad 
^ndeed. 


CHILDREN   OF  THE   GREAT   KIXG.  93 

"  Dear  children,  if  you  could  hear,  as  I  do,  from 
many  lips,  the  mournful,  wailing  regrets  that 
Christ  was  not  sought. after  in  health,  you  would 
feel  in  truth  the  great  importance  of  not  putting 
off  coming  to  Jesus  till  death  comes.  I  have  been 
by  many  death-beds,  able,  I  trust,  to  help  and 
comfort  some. 

"  One  dear  friend,  by  whose  bed  I  had  sat  for 
many  days,  looking  for  his  death,  (and  longing  to 
hear  one  word  from  his  lips  to  tell  of  his  hope  in 
Christ,  of  which  I  could  know  nothing,)  this 
morning,  to  the  amazement  of  all,  has  rallied,  and 
the  doctor  thinks  he  is  in  a  fair  way  of  recovery. 
The  first  words  he  said  were,  '  Pray,  pray ;  death 
has  been  very  near  me,  and  I  was  not  prepared; 
I  have  never  thought  of  my  God  in  the  days  of 
health,  as  I  should.  If  he  spares  me,  with  his 
help  my  life  shall  be  a  different  one.  Say  that 
verse  again  :  "  If  any  man  sin,  we  have  an  advo- 
cate [I  finished  it]  with  the  Father,  Jesus  Christ 
the  righteous ;  and  he  is  the  propitiation  for  our 
sins." '  "While  repeating  the  words  he  fell  asleep, 
and  awoke  much  better.  He  is  a  young  officer  of 
the  name  of  Ains worth,  with  whom  I  have  only 
lately  become  acquainted ;  but  I  knew  his  father 
some  years  ago,  when  our  regiment  was  quar 


94  CHILDREN   OF  THE   GREAT  KIXG. 

tered  in  Yorkshire,  in  which  county  he  had   a 
property. 

"  In  Claude's  last  letter  he  asks  me  how  I  can 
endure  to  stop  here  doing  nothing  while  all  that 
fighting  is  going  on,  and  exalts  the  brave  conduct 
of  the  young  Englishmen  who  went  to  the  imme- 
diate help  of  the  Turks ;  but  Claude,  my  boy,  you 
forget  that  a  soldier  is  fully  doing  his  duty  when 
he  is  obeying  the  orders  of  his  leader  whosoever 
he  may  be.  He  must  learn  to  wait  as  well  as 
fight,  and  it  can  never  be  a  soldier's  part  to  ques- 
tion whether  his  leader  is  giving  right  orders  or 
not.  When  he  gives  the  word,  all  are  ready,  nay, 
longing  to  go ;  but  till  then  our  duty  is  to  wait  in 
patience.  •.  If  every  soldier  were  to  do  only  that 
which  was  right  in  his  own  eyes,  where  were  dis- 
cipline, and  what  would  our  army  be  worth? 
And  if  this  be  so  in  earthly  things,  how  much 
more  so  in  heavenly  ?  Our  duty  must  always  be 
to  obey  not  our  own  inclinations,  but  the  orders 
of  the  Captain  of  our  own  salvation:  where  he 
points  the  way,  to  follow;  where  he  forbids 
us  to  go,  to  go  not.  An  earthly  leader  may 
err,  the  Great  King  can  never.  The  young 
Englishmen  you  write  of  are  noble  fellows ; 
and  as  they  were  then  under  no  command,  they 


CHILDREN   OF  THE   GREAT   KING.  95 

were  fully  justified  in  acting  the  bold  part  they 
did. 

"  But  do  not  be  afraid,  Claude ;  we  are  not 
going  to  leave  all  the  honor  to  them.  We  put 
full  trust  in  our  commander,  and  know  that  when 
the  right  time  comes  he  will  not  hang  back. 
Already  reports  are  going  that  orders  from  En- 
gland have  arrived,  telling  us  to  set  off.  If  so, 
none  will  rejoice  more  than  your  affectionate 
father,  who  commends  you  both,  now  and  always, 
to  the  loving  protection  of  your  Father  in  heaven, 
who  is  present  everywhere." 

Ada's  voice  trembled  as  she  read  the  letter,  and 
her  heart  failed,  her.  She  saw  nothing  but  danger 
on  all  hands  for  her  father.  Even  if  he  escaped 
cholera,  still  there  was  the  danger  of  the  battle- 
fields before  him.  The  danger  he  was  in  had 
never  come  so  forcibly  before  her,  and  Claude 
was  not  beside  her  to  laugh  away  her  fears.  She 
had  read  the  letter  aloud  to  her  uncle  and  aunt 
alone ;  when  she  had  finished  it,  Mrs.  Willoughby 
noticed  the  deadly  paleness  of  her  face,  and  strove 
to  comfort  her,  telling  her  she  should  be  very 
thankful  that  her  papa  was  so  well,  and  wrote  in 
such  good  spirits. 


PG  CHILDREN-  OF   THE   GREAT   KING. 

Yes,  Ada  acknowledged  she  should  be  so ; 
"  only  you  know,"  said  she,  "  that  letter  is  written 
days  ago,  and  the  cholera  was  still  raging,  and 
papa  might  have  got  it  now,  or  even  be  dead." 
And  saying  that,  she  laid  down  her  head  and 
burst -into  tears.  No  need  to  repress  them  now, 
she  thought ;  she  had  no  papa  near  to  be  dis- 
tressed at  the  sight. 

Mrs.  Willoughby  looked  and  felt  troubled ;  but 
her  uncle  soothed  Ada,  quietly  drawing  her  to  his 
arms,  and,  reminding  her  she  was  distressing  her- 
self unnecessarily,  began  to  talk  to  her  about  the 
letter,  and  by  degrees  got  her  to  answer  him,  and 
to  interest  herself  about  her  father's  new  friend, 
Mr.  Ainsworth,  till,  in  thinking  of  others,  she 
forgot  her  own  grief.  But  once  more  there  came 
a  deep  sob  and  a  heartfelt  exclamation,  "  O  if  I 
only  knew  papa  was  safe  ! " 

"  Ada,"  whispered  her  uncle,  "  can  you  not  trust 
him  to  the  keeping  of  the  Great  King  ?  " 

She  said  nothing,  but  left  the  room  to  call 
Frances  and  Arthur  to  their  Bible-reading. 

Mr.  Willoughby  spoke  chiefly  that  day  on  the 
verse,  "  He  shall  fear  no  evil  tidings  whose  heart 
is  fixed,  trusting  in  the  Lord." 

"The   servants   of  the  Great  King,"  he   said, 


CHILDREN   OF  THE   GREAT   KING.  97 

"  have  no  right  to  be  always  looking  forward  to 
evil,  seeing  all  the  mercies  we  are  every  day  re- 
ceiving from  him  should  rather  lead  us  to  expect 
blessing  than  evil.  And  besides,  if  we  really 
trust  in  him,  we  know  that  whatever  happens  to 
us,  painful  though  it  seem,  will  yet  in  the  end 
prove  good  to  us,  and  not  evil." 

He  then  spoke  of  Christ's  command :  "  Take  no 
thought  for  the  morrow:  sufficient  unto  th%  day 
is  the  evil  thereof."  "If  grief  is  coming  on  us, 
time  enough  to  bear  it  when  it  comes  ;  no  need  to 
go  half  way  to  meet  it."  As  he  spoke  his  eye 
rested  on  his  boy,  and  he  felt  he  himself  sorely 
needed  to  learn  the  rery  lesson  he  was  trying  to 
teach  others. 

Have  not  we  all  a  like  need?  how  many  an 
anxious,  restless  night,  how  many  a  bitter  tear 
and  an  aching  heart  would  be  spared  us  if  we 
would  cease  to  look  forward  to  evils  which  per- 
haps never  really  come  at  all,  and,  looking  only 
to  the  present,  learn  the  full  truth  of  the  promise, 
"  that  as  our  day  is,  so  shall  our  strength  be." 

When  school  hours  were  over  Miss  Manley 
asked  Ada  about  her  letter.  Eagerly  the  child 
related  some  particulars  of  it,  dwelling  on  the 
account  given  of  Captain  Ainsworth.  So  en- 


98  CHILDREN    OF  THE   GREAT   KING. 

grossed  was  she  with  the  story,  that  she  failed  to 
observe  Miss  Manley's  agitation  at  the  mention  of 
the  name  and  illness.  But  Arthur,  who  was  sit- 
ting beside  them,  and  chanced  to  be  looking  at 
Miss  Manley,  saw  a  strange  expression  come  over 
her  face,  and,  starting  forward,  asked  if  she  were 
ill,  and  if  he  could  get  anything  for  her.  By  a 
strong  mental  effort  she  roused  herself,  and  thank- 
ing Arthur,  said  she  felt  sick  and  faint,  and  would 
go  and  lie  down  a  while. 

For  some  minutes  after  she  reached  her  room 
she  sat  like  one  in  a  dream ;  only  one  thought  in 
her  mind,  one  sight  before  her  eyes :  Herbert 
Ainsworth  ill  and  dying,  far  from  home.  If  she 
had  ever  deceived  herself  into  the  belief  that  she 
no  longer  loved  him,  she  was  undeceived  now. 
O  to  see  him  once  more,  to  hear  him  speak,  to 
have  one  word  of  kindness  from  him  !  "  I  could 
lay  down  my  life  to  save  him ;  for  O  how  I  love 
him ! "  was  the  confession  coming  from  her  in  that 
moment. 

But  not  long  could  she  indulge  her  grief;  she 
had  duties  to  perform,  and  in  silence  she  must 
bear  her  own  burden.  She  had  no  right  that  the 
world  would  acknowledge,  that  she  should  grieve 
thus  for  one  who  had  clearly  shown  he  no  longer 


CHILDREN   OF  THE   GREAT  KING.  99 

valued  her  love.  Only  one  thing  she  might  do ; 
she  could  pray  for  him,  pray  that  if  it  were  the 
will  of  God  he  might  yet  be  spared,  and  prove  a 
time  follower  of  Him  who  had  made  atonement 
for  him. 

Blessed  indeed  are  the  children  of  the  Great 
King  in  this,  their  inestimable  privilege  of  prayer. 
Through  Christ  Jesus  they  are  permitted  to  enter 
into  the  very  presence-chamber  of  the  King,  and 
there,  with  full  confidence  in  his  sympathizing 
love,  to  tell  him  every  difficulty,  every  little  sor- 
row, and  every  care,  and  seek  his  guidance. 
Griefs  that  can  be  told  to  no  earthly  friends  can 
be  communicated  to  Him  who  lends  an  ever- 
patient  ear,  and  upbraideth  not.  Alas !  how  sel- 
dom even  his  own  children  avail  themselves  as 
they  might  of  their  glorious  privilege !  Often 
they  scarcely  value  it  till  the  hour  of  sore  suffer- 
ing, when  man's  compassion  fails  to  relieve,  and 
leads  them  to  seek  that  of  Him,  who  alone  is  able 
to  comfort  those  that  mourn,  and  give  them 
beauty  for  ashes,  the  oil  of  joy  for  mourning,  the 
garment  of  praise  for  the  spirit  of  heaviness. 

Few  remarks  were  made  on  Miss  Manley's 
sudden  indisposition.  "  What  has  become  of 
Miss  Manley  ? "  said  Frances  as  she  came  into 


100          CHILDREN   OF  THE   CHEAT   KING. 

the  school-room  soon  after  she  had  left.  Ada 
told  her  she  had  felt  faint,  and  gone  to  lie  down 
a  little. 

"  Then,"  said  she,  "  perhaps  I  had  better  go  and 
see  how  she  is." 

"  I  would  not  if  I  were  you,"  said  Arthur.  "  I 
think  she  wanted  to  be  left  quite  alone." 

"  O,  well,"  Frances  said,  "  if  that  is  what  she 
wishes  I  will  not  go  near  her ;  only  mamma  will 
say  it  was  unkind." 

Ada  would  at  once  have  followed  Miss  Manley 
and  seen  her  lie  comfortably  down ;  but  Arthur 
had  held  her  back,  and  said  that  he  was  quite 
sure  she  would  rather  be  alone.  "  Ada,"  said  he, 
"  you  can't  think  what  a  strange  look  came  over 
her  face  just  as  you  read  out  Captain  Ainsworth's 
name.  I  should  not  wonder  if  he  is  an  old  friend, 
and  she  turned  faint  when  she  heard  how  ill  he 
was." 

But  Ada  did  nofr  think  that  was  at  all  likely, 
because,  had  it  been  the  case,  she  would  have  told 
them  so,  and  it  would  have  quite  accounted  for 
her  sudden  illness.  "0  no,  it  was  just  as  she 
had  said,  a  slight  faintness,"  and  so  the  subject 
passed;  and  when,  shortly  after,  Miss  Manley 
came  in,  looking  pale  and  grave  it  is  true,  but 


CHILDREN   OF  THE   GREAT  KING.          101 

saying  she  was  better  now,  Ada  was  confirmed  in 
her  own  opinion.  But  Arthur,  although  he  spoke 
no  more  of  it,  could  npt  help  thinking  that  Miss 
Manley  knew  Captain  Ainsworth,  and  was  very 
sorry  he  was  ill. 


102         CHILDREN  OF  THE  GREAT  KING. 


CHAPTER  XI. 

"  Yes,  man  for  man  perchance  may  brave 
The  horrors  of  the  yawning  grave ; 
And  friend  for  friend,  or  child  for  sire, 
Undaunted  and  unmoved  expire, 
From  love,  or  piety,  or  pride ; 
But  who  can  die  as  Jesus  died  ? " 

NOT  far  from  Willoughby  House  lay  the  pretty 
little  village  of  Ashton.  The  houses  which  con- 
stituted it  were  not  numerous,  and  were  inhabited 
entirely  by  the  working  classes,  most  of  whom 
were  agricultural  laborers.  At  the  further  end  of 
the  village,  at  the  foot  of  a  wooded  declivity,  was 
the  parsonage,  and  at  a  short  distance  from  it  the 
village  church. 

The  clergyman  was  a  young  man,  who  had  only 
been  a  few  months  in  the  parish,  but  who  had 
already  won  all  hearts  by  his  frank,  open  man- 
ners, unwearied  kindness,  and  attention  to  his 
duties.  Keen  critics  might  have  said  that  his 
sermons  were  far  from  clever,  more  remarkable 
for  simplicity  than  depth;  and  possibly  it  was 
so.  But  they  were  faithful  expositions  of  the 


CHILDREN   OF  THE   GREAT  KING.          103 

will  of  God  concerning  man,  and  clear  declara- 
tions of  the  Gospel  of  Christ,  of  the  only  way  of 
salvation.  ~No  thirsting  soul  went  to  that  church 
longing  to  know  what  to  do  to  be  saved,  and 
came  away  in  doubt  as  to  the  way.  "  Believe  in 
the  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  and  ye  shall  be  saved;" 
"  Come  to  him,  and  ye  have  his  own  promise,  He 
that  cometh  to  me,  I  will  in  no  wise  cast  out," 
was  the  substance  of  the  message  which  they 
received  as  suited  to  their  wants.  They  felt  as 
if  the  minister  had  read  their  very  hearts. 

Many  might  have  desired  the  advantages  of  a 
more  learned  ministry,  but  his  simple-minded 
hearers  were  well  pleased ;  and,  at  all  events,  the 
food  with  which  they  were  fed,  if  not  strongly 
savored  with  earthly  learning,  was  composed  of 
the  purest  Gospel  nourishment ;  and  many  lived 
to  bless  the  day  when  they  heard  the  Gospel 
message  so  faithfully  and  simply  delivered  in  the 
parish  church. 

Nor  were  his  sermons  confined  to  the  pulpit, 
but  they  were  continued  in  his  life  during  the 
week.  His  delight  was  in  his  Master's  work ; 
and  the  peace  and  joy  which  dwelt  in  his  heart 
showed  itself  in  his  walk  and  conversation,  and 
proclaimed,  as  loudly  as  words  could  do,  that  the 


104         CHILDREN  OF  THE   GREAT  KING. 

Master  he  served  was  a  good  one,  his  yoke  an 
easy  one,  and  his  burden  light.  Mr.  Willoughby 
was  much  attracted  by  the  young  minister ;  and 
together  they  engaged  in  many  a  labor  of  love, 
Mr.  Hole  often  obtaining  much  assistance  in  any 
difficulty  from  Mr.  Willoughby's  clear  judgment. 

The  young  clergyman  became  a  frequent  visitor 
at  Willoughby  House,  and  was  a  great  favorite 
with  the  young  members  of  it ;  Arthur  especially 
loving  to  hear  him  talk,  because,  as  he  told  Ada, 
his  heart  was  so  full  of  love  to  the  Son  of  the 
Great  King. 

"He  could  not  help  speaking  of  him,"  said  he. 
"  And,  do  you  know,  when  I  said  to  him  the  other 
day  that  I  did  so  like  everything  that  was  beauti- 
ful, he  asked  me  if  I  remembered  that  all  these 
things  were  the  gifts  of  the  Lord,  and  that  I  must 
never  forget  that  his  most  precious  gift  to  the 
children  of  men  is  his  only  Son,  who  is  altogether 
lovely.  Then  he  made  me  notice  the  names  of 
beauty  which  are  given  to  Jesus :  '  The  Rose  of 
Sharon,'  'The  Lily  of  the  Valley,'  'The  Apple- 
Tree  of  the  Wood,'  with  its  beautiful  hanging 
fruit,  '  The  Plant  of  Renown,'  '  The  Bright  and 
Morning  Star;'  and,  Ada,  isn't  it  very  pleasant 
\f-  think  that  the  Guide  who  is  leading  us  all  the 


CHILDREN   OF  THE   GREAT  KING.          105 

way  to   the  palace   of  the    Great    King    is    so 
beautiful !" 

Ada  said  she  liked  io  think  of  that  very  well ; 
but  what  she  liked  best  of  all  was  to  know  that 
Jesus  held  her  in  his  firm  grasp,  and  would  not  let 
her  go,  because  she  was  so  little  able  to  do  right 
in  her  own  strength ;  that,  but  for  him,  she  would, 
she  knew,  turn  aside,  and  never,  never  reach  the 
palace  at  all. 

"  Ada,"  said  Mr.  Hole  one  day,  "  have  you  never 
a  spare  hour  you  could  give  to  read  a  little  to  a 
poor  blind  woman  in  the  village  ?  She  is  alone 
almost  all  day,  and,  poor  body,  is  lonely  enough, 
not  even  being  accustomed  to  it,  like  many  blind 
people,  for  she  has  only  turned  so  lately." 

"  O  yes,  I  could,"  was  the  eager  reply ;  "  on 
Wednesday  we  have  always  a  half-holiday,  and 
are  allowed  to  do  what  we  like ;  and  then  on  Sat- 
urdays I  could,  and  would  like  it  so  much.  Stay 
a  moment ;  of  course  I  must  ask  aunt's  leave  first." 

Mrs.  Willoughby  had  no  objections  to  the  plan. 
She  knew  well  about  old  Mrs.  Barnes,  and  if  Ada 
liked,  certainly  she  might,  and  she  dared  say  Fran- 
ces would  also  go  sometimes ;  but  Frances  cut  her 
part  of  the  matter  very  short,  by  declaring  that 
Ada  might  do  as  she  liked,  but  she  had  no  desire 


106          CHILDREN   OF  THE   GREAT   KING. 

to  become  a  reader  to  old  women,  to  please  Mr. 
Hole  or  any  other  person. 

"  O  Frances  ! "  exclaimed  Ada,  "  I  don't  wish 
to  do  it  merely  to  please  Mr.  Hole,  but  I  Avould 
like  to  help  to  cheer  a  poor  blind  woman.  Think 
how  very,  very  dull  she  must  be,  not  able  to  see 
anything;  and,  besides,  I  will  like  to  do  it  to 
please — "  She  stopped  short,  for  she  saw  Mr. 
Hole  had  moved  across  the  room,  and  must  have 
overheard  the  conversation. 

He  stepped  forward  to  her,  and  said  he  was  glad 
she  had  got  her  aunt's  permission;  as  the  next 
day  was  Wednesday,  perhaps,  if  her  uncle,  who 
was  coming  to  the  parsonage  at  all  events  in  the 
afternoon,  would  bring  her  with  him,  he  would 
like  to  go  with  her  himself  and  introduce  her  to 
Mrs.  Barnes.  "  She  is  a  true  servant  of  the  Lord, 
I  believe,"  said  he ;  "  and  in  helping  his  servants 
we  are  helping  him.  Even  now  from  heaven  the 
Great  King  is  saying  to  his  children,  '  Inasmuch 
as  ye  do  it  unto  one  of  the  least  of  these  my  breth- 
ren, ye  do  it  unto  me.' " 

Ada  soon  glided  away  to  talk  to  her  uncle, 
leaving  Mr.  Hole  and  Frances  alone.  He  had 
overheard  Frances's  speech,  and  felt  it  a  duty  to 
give  her  a  word  of  reproof;  but  how  to  do  so 


CHILDREN  OF  THE  GREAT  KING.          107 

wisely,  perplexed  him,  not  so  much  from  a  fear  of 
offending  her  as  of  repelling,  and  thus  marring  his 
power  of  perhaps  influencing  her  for  good,  as  her 
father  had  once  or  twice  urged  him  to  do. 

Frances,  fearing  he  might  have  heard  her  speech, 
felt  somewhat  constrained  when  left  alone  with 
him ;  bat  Mr.  Hole  pat  her  at  ease  by  asking  her 
some  simple  questions.  Then,  changing  the  con- 
versation, he  asked  her  if  there  had  been  any  let- 
ters lately  from  her  uncle,  Colonel  Percy. 

"Yes,"  Frances  answered;  "and  he  writes  that 
a  report  was  going  that  orders  from  England  had 
arrived,  desiring  them  to  set  out  for  the  Crimea. 
Of  course  uncle  was  very  anxious  to  be  off;  and, 
Mr.  Hole,  don't  you  admire  those  young  officers, 
Nasmyth,  Butler,  and  Ballard,  and  the  other  four, 
who  hare  helped  the  Turks  so  bravely?  Bat  for 
them,  uncle  wrote  some  time  ago,  Silistria  must 
hare  Mien ;  and  they  say  the  Turks  love  them  so 
they  would  do  anything  for  them.  And  well  they 
may;  poor  Captain  Butler  received  his  death- 
wound  fighting  to  save  their  lives.  I  am  sure  it 
is  no  wonder  they  think  highly  of  them." 

"Ho,  indeed,  Miss  Willoughby,  they  have  a 
good  claim  on  their  affection,  and  for  their  sakes 
should  be  glad,  nay  anxious,  to  help  any  English- 


108          CHILDREN  OF  THE  GREAT  KING. 

man,  should   an   opportunity  be   given  to  him; 
shouldn't  you  think  so  ?  " 

"O  certainly,"  replied  Frances,  "it  would  be 
the  best  manner  of  showing  their  gratitude  to 
those,  one  of  whom,  at  least,  died  to  save  them. 
But,  Mr.  Hole,  you  look  grave ;  was  Captain  But- 
ler a  friend  or  relation  of  yours  ?  " 

"  No,  O  no,"  said  Mr.  Hole ;  "  but  my  thoughts 
turned  to  a  Friend  who  had  laid  down  his  own 
life  to  save  mine,  and  I  was  thinking  that  the  best 
way  I  could  show  my  grateful  remembrance  of 
what  he  had  done  for  me  was  by  helping  his 
friends." 

"  Laid  down  his  life  for  you,  Mr.  Hole !  how  ?  " 
exclaimed  Frances. 

"And  for  you  also,  Miss  Willoughby.  What 
friend  has  done  for  us  what  the  Lord  Jesus  has 
done  ?  so  loved  us  as  to  die  for  us  ?  How  have 
you  shown  your  gratitude  to  him,  in  return  for  all 
he  has  done  ?  He  asks  you  to  give  him  your  heart. 
Ask  yourself  if  you  have  done  so.  Were  he  now 
on  earth,  would  you  not  like  to  do  all  you  could 
to  help  and  comfort  him?  and  when  he  tells  you. 
that  if  you  do  so  to  his  people,  he  will  regard  it 
as  done  to  himself,  will  you  turn  a  deaf  ear  to  his 
words  ?  " 


CHILDREN   OF  THE   GREAT  KING.          109 

Frances  was  touched  by  the  earnestness  of  Mr. 
Hole's  words,  and  said  frankly,  "  I  see  you  heard 
what  I  said  to  Ada  about  the  poor  woman ;  but  I 
did  not  think  of  it  in  that  way,  only  I  would  not  care 
about  reading  to  those  kind  of  people ;  and — and — " 

She  stopped,  for  she  was  going  to  quote  one  of 
Miss  Roscoe's  speeches,  to  the  effect  that  she  did 
not  wish  to  be  one  of  your  very  good  people,  who 
are  righteous  overmuch.  She  had  thought  this 
speech  a  very  clever  one  when  Emily  Roscoe  had 
made  it ;  but  even  her  bold  spirit  quailed  under 
Mr.  Hole's  earnest  eye,  and  so  she  left  the  sentence 
unfinished. 

Mr.  Hole  regarded  her  steadily.  "  All  the  chil- 
dren of  the  Great  King,"  he  said,  "  love  to  do  his 
will.  They  that  are  not  his  children  are  the  chil- 
dren of  the  prince  of  the  powers  of  darkness.  Re- 
member, it  is  to  those  on  his  left  hand  that,  at  the 
day  of  judgment,  the  great  Judge  shall  say,  *  Inas- 
much as  ye  did  it  not  unto  one  of  the  least  of  these 
my  brethren,  ye  did  it  not  unto  me.'  If  you  would 
not  desire  to  be  one  of  those  on  the  left  hand,  then 
seek  now,  Miss  Willoughby,  pardon  through  the 
blood  of  Jesus ;  and  remember,  the  Great  King 
hath  promised  that  they  who  seek  him  early  shall 
find  him." 


110          CHILDREN   OF  THE   GEEAT   KING. 

Frances  gave  no  response  to  his  words,  and 
Mr.  Hole  rose  and  joined  the  rest  of  the  party,  but 
not  without  a  secret  prayer  that  the  words  spoken 
might  take  effect  in  the  girl's  heart.  Had  he  heard 
her  an  hour  afterward,  teasing  Ada  about  turning 
a  Scripture-reader,  and  asking  her  what  payment 
she  expected  for  her  trouble,  he  would  have  judged 
that  the  words  spoken  had  been  spoken  in  vain ; 
but  the  seed  sown  does  not  at  once  spring  up,  and 
appear  above  ground.  Sometimes  it  may  lie  long 
deep  down  in  the  earth ;  and  while  men  are  say- 
ing, "  It  will  never  spring  up  at  all,"  the  Lord  of 
the  harvest  can  send  down  a  shower  of  refreshing 
rain  upon  the  very  spot,  and  the  little  seed  will 
suddenly  begin  to  live,  and  piercing  through  .the 
ground  set  up  a  small  green  blade,  very  small,  it 
may  be  at  first,  but  from  which  in  due  season  will 
come  the  ear,  and  then  the  full  corn  in  the  ear. 


CHILDREN  OF  THE   GREAT  KING.          Ill 


CHAPTER  XII. 

Ah,  Lord  God !  behold,  I  cannot  speak :  for  I  am  a  child. 
But  the  Lord  said  unto  me,  Say  not,  I  am  a  child :  for  thou  shalt 
go  to  all  that  I  shall  send  thee,  and  whatsoever  I  command  thee 
thou  shalt  speak. — JEB.  i,  6,  7. 

THERE  was  no  prettier  house  in  the  little  village 
than  the  one  in  which  Widow  Barnes  lived,  built 
of  the  granite  stone  found  in  the  neighborhood ; 
and,  perfectly  covered  with  roses,  honeysuckle, 
and  the  beautiful  scarlet  clianthus,  it  united  com- 
fort with  beauty. 

The  little  garden,  always  nicely  kept,  was  well 
stocked  with  vegetables  and  bright  flowers  of  all 
sorts.  A  couple  of  bee-hives  might  be  seen  in  a 
corner,  while,  overshadowing  the  little  cottage, 
were  some  large  apple  and  pear-trees.  A  small 
wicket  gate  led  from  the  village  road  into  the 
garden ;  and  when  Ada,  accompanied  by  Mr.  Hole, 
entered  it  on  the  Wednesday  afternoon  we  have 
spoken  of,  she  thought  she  had  never  seen  a  pleas- 
auter  spot,  and  pitied  from  her  heart  the  poor 
woman  who  sat  at  the  door  knitting,  and  yet  saw 
not  the  beautiful  flowers,  nor  the  bright  sunshine 


112          CHILDREN  OF  THE  GREAT  KING. 

which  was  falling  on  trees  and  flowers,  and  color- 
ing the  thickly-hanging  fruit. 

Kindly  Mr.  Hole  greeted  the  blind  woman,  and 
told  her  he  had  brought  a  young  friend  of  his  to 
see  her,  whom  he  would  leave  with  her  a  little, 
while  he  went  elsewhere.  At  first  Ada  felt  shy 
and  constrained ;  but  by  degrees  the  old  woman's 
kind  talk  set  her  at  ease,  and  she  talked  away  as 
to  an  old  friend. 

"  Yet  it's  dull  enough,  Miss,  sitting  here  all  the 
day  seeing  nothing,"  said  the  poor  woman ;  "  and 
many's  the  time  I  weary  sorely.  The  humming  of 
the  bees,  the  chirping  of  the  birdies,  and  the  wind 
among  the  trees — they're  sort  of  company,  you 
see ;  and  then  I  can  knit  a  stocking,  and  I'm  bet- 
ter than  many  a  poor  blind  body,  for  I  can  see 
faces  with  the  eyes  of  my  mind  so  clear,  that  times 
I  start  up,  and  can't  believe  but  I  see  them  really. 
I've  two  sons  living,  dear,  and  a  daughter  and 
two  sons  in  the  grave.  Susan  and  one  of  my  boys 
lie  yonder  in  the  churchyard,  beside  their  father ; 
but  the  best  and  blithest  of  all,  Willie,  my  sailor- 
boy,  lies  in  a  watery  grave.  I  can  strew  the 
graves  of  the  others  with  flowers,  but  'tis  only 
tears  I  can  shed  for  him.  O,  but  he  was  good, 
and  his  old  mother  loved  him  as  the  apple  of  her 


CHILDRE^T   OF  THE   GREAT   KING.  113 

eye."  And  as  she  spoke  large  tears  were  falling 
from  the  blind  eyes. 

Ada's  heart  was  full  of  compassion;  no  set 
words  of  comfort  came  from  her  lips;  just  the 
simple  overflowing  of  her  young  trusting  soul. 
"  O,  Mrs.  Barnes,  don't  cry  so ;  if  he  loved  Jesus 
he  is  safe  in  the  golden  city,  in  the  palace  of  the 
Great  King.  It  must  be  so  pleasant  to  be  there  ! 
Only  think  of  the  clear  river  of  the  water  of  life, 
that  always  flows  there,  and  of  the  tree  of  life 
with  its  beautiful  leaves,  and  all  manner  of  fruits ; 
and  then,  you  know,  he  sees  the  Lamb  of  God  face 
to  face." 

As  she  spoke  she  slipped  her  hand  into  the  blind 
mother's.  Mrs.  Barnes  spoke  not  for  a  while,  but 
the  tears  ceased  to  fall,  and  she  pressed  the  soft 
young  hand  in  hers,  and  a  quiet  thoughtful  ex- 
pression crossed  her  face. 

At  last  she  spoke;  it  seemed  more  to  herself 
than  to  Ada :  "  The  golden  city,  the  palace  of  the 
Great  King !  Yes,  it's  there  he  is.  Poor  foolish 
mother  that  I  am,  to  cry  for  him,  and  he  there ; 
and  even  were  he  here,  I  could  not  see  him,  only 
I  could  hear  his  voice,  and  it  was  such  a  pleasant 
one ;  and  no  doubt  I  could  throw  my  arms  round 
him  and  kiss  him.  Still  he  must  be  happier  there, 


114          CHILDREN   OF  THE   GREAT   KING. 

in  the  golden  city.  Please  the  Lord  I'll  see  him 
there,  in  the  palace  of  the  Great  King." 

Ada  started  as  a  child's  voice  close  beside  them 
said,  "  Where's  that  palace,  grandmother  ?  Is  it  a 
very  grand  one,  like  what  our  queen  lives  in ;  so 
grand,  they  say,  with  ever  so  many  windows  in  it, 
and  rooms  upon  rooms  ?  O !  they  do  say  it's  a 
sight  to  see." 

"  Ay,  Willie,  (he  is  a  Willie  too,"  she  said  to 
Ada,)  "  the  palace  of  the  Great  King  is  far  grander 
even  than  that,  and  you  may  live  in  it  if  you  will. 
It  is  up  there,  Willie,  beyond  the  clouds ;  it  is 
heaven.  Miss  here  will  perhaps  tell  you  about  it." 

But  as  Willie  caught  sight  of  Ada's  face,  he 
hung  his  head  and  turned  bashful. 

"  Shall  I  tell  you  what  it  is  like  ?  "  Ada  asked. 
The  boy's  only  answer  was  an  eager  look.  "  The 
palace  is -of  pure  gold,  like  clear  glass;  its  walls 
are  of  all  sorts  of  beautiful  stones,  its  gates  are 
white  and  shining,  its  streets  are  of  gold,  and  a 
pure  bright  river  runs  there  always." 

The  boy's  eyes  were  riveted  now.  "  I'd  like  to 
see  it,"  he  said.  "How  can  I?  do  tell  me." 

"  You  must  ask  Jesus  to  take  you  there,"  said 
Ada.  "  He  is  the  Son  of  the  Great  King,  and  died 
on  the  cross  for  our  sins,  that  all  who  wish  to  be 


CHILDREN  OF  THE   GREAT  KING.          115 

his  children  and  do  his  will  may  have  admittance 
to  the  palace.  You  must  ask  him  to  make  you 
his,  "Willie,  and  learn  his  will.  Can  you  read  ?  " 

The  boy  said  no,  and  ran  off. 

His  grandmother  feared  it  was  her  fault ;  "  for 
all  he  was  seven  years  old,  he  only  just  knew  his 
letters,"  she  said.  "  You  see  his  mother  died  when 
he  was  but  a  baby ;  and  his  father,  who  is  my  old- 
est son,  and  lives  with  me,  has  just  petted  the  bit 
boy,  and  never  cared  to  have  him  learn.  And 
then,  since  I  have  got  blind  these  six  months  past, 
there  was  no  one  near  the  whole  day  when  his 
father  is  out  at  work ;  so  he  said  Willie  should  not 
go  to  school  for  another  year,  but  stop  and  tend 
on  me.  But  the  boy's  keen  to  learn,  and  I  only 
wish  his  father  would  not  think  on  me,  and  just 
let  him  go  with  the  rest  of  the  village  children  to 
school.  He  is  a  thoughtful  child,  and  kind  to  his 
old  grandmother.  Well,  it  may  be  I'll  need  no 
attendance  ere  long,  for  the  Great  King  may  send 
for  me.  Thank  you,  dear,  for  speaking  about  him ; 
you've  done  an  old  body  good." 

Just  then  Mr.  Hole  came  in  at  the  wicket,  and 
told  Ada  she  must  come  now.  She  shook  hands 
with  Mrs.  Barnes  and  promised  to  come  again, 
then  ran  out  to  the  road. 


116          CHILDREN  OF  THE   GREAT  KING. 

Mr.  Hole  lingered  a  moment:  "Did  she  cheer 
you,  Mrs.  Barnes  ?  "  he  asked. 

"  That  she  did,  sir,  more  than  she  thinks ;  her 
simple  words  went  straight  to  my  heart ;  it  is  the 
Lord  himself  who  is  leading  her,  I  think." 

"  Well,  Ada,  how  did  the  reading  come  on  ?  " 
Mr.  Hole  said. 

Blushing  scarlet,  Ada  owned,  with  a  feeling  of 
shame,  "  O !  }  did  not  read ;  indeed,  Mr.  Hole,  I 
never  thought  of  it ;  we  only  talked..  She  told  me 
a  great  deal  about  her  dead  son,  and  I  just  listened ; 
and  we  spoke  of  the  palace  of  the  King,  and  she 
seemed  pleased.  But  that  was  all ;  it  was  so  little 
I  did.  I  know,  of  course,  I  should  have  read  to 
her ;  I  knew  that  was  what  you  asked  me  to  do ; 
perhaps  I  will  manage  better  another  day.  Was 
I  very  wrong,  Mr.  Hole  ?  " 

He  smiled  at  the  bright,  earnest  face  raised  to 
his.  "  No,  no,  Ada,  I  wish  to  impose  no  formal 
rule  on  you;  you  must  use  your  own  judgment, 
young  as  you  are.  A  word  of  the  Great  King, 
spoken  in  love,  often  does  more  good  than  a  whole 
chapter  read  as  a  duty.  I  hope  you  have  done 
good,  not  hann,  to-day." 

He  parted  from  her,  having  seen  her,  as  he  had 
promised  Mr.  Willoughby,  safe  into  the  Willough- 


CHILDREN  OF  THE  GREAT  KING.          117 

by  grounds.  As  he  watched  her  a  moment,  a 
question,  asked  eighteen  hundred  years  ago,  rose 
to  his  lips,  "  Who  is  the  greatest  in  the  kingdom 
of  heaven  ?  "  He  remembered  how  the  Lord  Jesus 
answered  the  question  by  calling  a  little  child  and 
setting  him  in  the  midst  of  the  questioners ;  and ' 
he  rejoiced  to  think  that  Jesus  was  now,  as  then, 
a  lover  of  the  children,  and  still  warns  the  worldly 
and  profane,  that  it  were  better  they  were  drowned 
in  the  depths  of  the  sea  than  offend  one  of  his  little 
ones. 

When  Ada  reached  home  she  had  to  stand  a 
good  deal  of  bantering  from  Frances,  and  ques- 
tioning from  Arthur.  She  had  often  difficulty  in 
keeping  her  naturally  hot  temper  in  control  when 
Frances  bantered  her  thus;  but  somehow  it  did 

• 

not  seem  so  difficult  to-day,  for  the  thought  of  the 
patient  spirit  of  the  blind  woman  made  it  easier. 
Arthur's  questions  were  answered  with  pleasure ; 
and  when  they  were  alone  she  told  him  about  little 
Willie,  and  of  his  wish  to  learn  to  read ;  adding, 
"  Doesn't  it  seem  a  pity  he  cannot  go  to  school  ? 
and  yet  it  would  not  be  right  for  Mrs.  Barnes  to 
be  left  all  alone  either." 

"  O  no !  it  would  not,"  said  Arthur ;  "  but,  Ada, 

do  you  think  I  could  teach  him?    I  would  so 
8 


118          CHILDREN  OF  THE   GREAT  KK(G. 

gladly  do  it ;  you  know  I  could  go  when  you  go 
to  see  the  grandmother." 

Ada  was  delighted  with  the  plan.  "  Of  course 
you  could,  Arthur;  you  are  so  smart  you  could 
do  anything ;  and  the  old  woman  will  be  so 
pleased.  I  am  so  glad  you  have  thought  of  it; 
only,  Arthur,  are  you  sure  that — "  But  some- 
thing stopped  Ada,  and  she  left  her  sentence 
unfinished. 

"  Only  what,  Ada  ?  "  But  she  turned  the  sub- 
ject, and  presently  Arthur,  full  of  his  plan,  went 
to  ask  his  papa's  leave  to  carry  it  into  execution. 
Eagerly  he  told  his  story.  Mr.  Willoughby  list- 
ened attentively,  although  he  marked  with  a  feel- 
ing of  pain  the  delicate  flush  which  mantled  the 
boy's  face  as  he  spoke. 

""Certainly,  Arthur,"  said  he,  "you  have  my 
leave;  but  remember,  if  you  undertake  it  you 
must  carry  it  out.  You  had  better  take  the 
matter  into  consideration.  You  must  not  forget 
that  your  plan  will  entail  your  giving  up  at  least 
two  hours  of  your  half  holidays,  and  so  there  will 
be  the  less  time  for  your  favorite  books  and  pursuits. 
I  don't  say  all  this,  Arthur,  to  discourage  you ; 
but  I  think  it  best  you  should  not  begin  a  thing 
rashly,  and  then  weary  of  it,  and  perhaps  com- 


CHILDREX  OF  THE   GREAT  KIXG.          119 

plain  that  you  never  thought  it  would  interfere 
with  your  usual  pleasures." 

"  No,  papa,"  said  Arthur,  "  I  will  not  do  that. 
I  have  thought  of  these  things ;  and  I  know  that 
Ada,  too,  fears  I  shall  weary  of  my  plan.  She 
did  not  say  it,  but  I  think  she  was  going  to  do  so, 
and  stopped  for  fear  I  should  not  like  it ;  but  if 
you  will  allow  me  to  begin,  I  think  I  will  not 
draw  back  now,  because  (and  he  raised  his  full, 
soft  eyes  to  his  father's)  I  will  ask  the  Great  King 
to  help  me,  and  I  know  he  will." 

"Well,  Arthur,  then  you  have  my  full  leave, 
and  best  wishes  for  your  success.  You  will  need 
to  exercise  patience  and  forbearance;  but,  with 
the  blessing  of  the  King,  I  doubt  not  you  will  get 
on  well." 

And  so  it  was,  that  on  Wednesday  and  Satur- 
day afternoons  Ada  and  Arthur  might  be  seen 
wending  their  way  through  the  lanes,  bright  with 
autumnal  flowers,  and  crossing  stubble  fields,  as 
they  went  to  Widow  Barnes's  cottage,  each  to 
pursue  their  several  labors  of  love.  The  reading 
lessons  got  on  capitally,  Willie  proving  a  most 
apt  scholar,  and  conceiving  an  extraordinary  af- 
fection for  his  young  teacher;  while  the  blind 
woman  listened  with  heartfelt  attentmn  .to  the 


120         CHILDREN  OF  THE  GREAT  KING. 

words  read  by  Ada  from  the  book  of  life,  or  to 
those  spoken  about  the  things  which  concern  the 
King. 

Times  there  were  when  these  visits  interfered 
with  some  holiday  pleasure,  and  a  struggle  would 
arise  in  their  hearts  as  the  great  tempter  whis 
pered  to  "  give  up  Widow  Barnes  for  to-day,  just 
for  once."  But  jt  soon  passed ;  the  Guide  who 
sustained  them  taught  them  how  to  resist  the  evil 
one,  till  he  fled  afar  off.  And  so  they  went  on  in 
the  path  of  duty,  finding  their  pleasure  in  it ;  and 
from  his  throne  on  high  the  Son  of  the  Great 
King  looked  down  on  the  loving,  happy  children, 
and  blessed  them  in  their  work. 

How  true  it  is  that,  even  in  this  world,  whoso- 
ever shall  give  even  a  cup  of  cold  water  to  any  of 
Christ's  people,  because  they  belong  to  him,  shall 
in  nowise  lose  his  reward  1 


CHILDREN  OF  THE  GREAT  KING.          121 


CHAPTER 

The  ornament  of  a  meek  and  quiet  spirit,  which  is  in  the  sight 
of  God  of  great  price. — 1  PETBB  iii,  4. 

"PAPA,  did  you  hear  what  Charlie  Whitmore 
was  telling  me  about  Claude  yesterday?"  said 
Frances  one  morning  at  breakfast.  "It  is  the 
best  story  I've  heard  for  long.  Tou  know  Mr. 
Marshman's  boys  go  on  Wednesday  afternoons  to 
play  cricket  with  the  boys  at  the  academy  at 
Portness.  "Well,  it  seems  that  for  some  time  they 
have  been  dreadfully  jealous  of  Claude  because  he 
is  the  best  player  among  them,  and  they  have 
tormented  him  in  all  sorts  of  ways,  and  called  him 
names,  all  to  make  him  get  up  a  fight ;  but  Claude 
was  determined  not  to  do  so,  though  Charlie  says 
he  knows  it  was  hard  work  to  keep  his  temper 
sometimes.  But  the  last  day  four  or  five  of  the 
biggest  of  the  Portness  boys  determined  to  make 
him  fight,  sure  they  could  beat  him.  Some  quarrel 
about  the  game  took  place ;  so  they  seized  their 
opportunity,  putting  the  blame  of  it  on  Claude. 

" '  He  had  nothing  to  do  with  it,'  he  protested. 


122         CHILDREN  OF  THE   GREAT  KING. 

*  Yes,  you  had ;  it's  a  lie  to  say  you  had  not.' 
Charlie  says  you  should  have  seen  Claude's  face 

•/          •/ 

of  indignation  at  the  words.  '  Percy,'  said  another 
of  the  boys,  'you  would  fight  them  for  saying 
that  if  you  were  not  a  coward.' 

" '  Of  course,  we  all  know  he  is  a  coward,'  said 
one  or  two  voices. 

" '  Prove  it,'  Claude  said ;  and  drawing  himself 
up,  stood  in  an  attitude  of  defense. 

" '  Then  you  will  fight  at  last  ? '  said  the  boy. 

" '  Certainly  not,'  said  Claude ;  '  but  let  any  one 
try  to  strike  me,  and  I  shall  know  how  to  receive 
him.' 

" '  Ah !  a  braggart  as  well  as  a  coward,'  said 
the  whole ;  and  the  biggest  boy  of  the  set  rushed 
at  him.  In  one  moment  he  was  laid  level  with 
the  ground.  Another  and  another  came  on,  and 
met  the  same  fate ;  the  rest  took  alarm,  and  held 
back.  The  three  who  had  attacked  him  rose  from 
the  grpund  and  sneaked  off;  but  from  that  day, 
Charlie  says,  there  has  been  no  bullying  of 
Claude,  and  he  has  become  the  leader  of  the 
games ;  and  knowing  that  his  love  of  peace  does 
not  arise  from  cowardice,  but  from  principle,  they 
have  learned  to  respect  him,  and  in  some  degree 
to  follow  his  example. 


CHILDREN  OF  THE  GREAT  KING.          123 

"  Now,  papa,  wasn't  it  prime  ?  isn't  it  a  jolly 
story  ?  I  think  Claude  is  a  perfect  brick." 

Mr.  Willoughby  could  scarcely  believe  his  ears, 
so  great  was  his  astonishment  at  Frances's  con- 
cluding words.  "The  story  itself  may  be  a  very 
good  one,"  he  said ;  "  but  the  words  in  which  you 
have  just  expressed  your  opinion  of  it  and  of 
Claude  are  so  perfectly  novel  to  me,  from  the  lips 
of  a  young  lady,  that  I  can  hardly  credit  having 
heard  them  aright.  Miss  Manley,  may  I  ask,  is 
Frances  in  the  habit  of  using  those  sorts  of 
terms  ?  " 

Miss  Manley  was  obliged  to  acknowledge  that 
for  some  time  past  she  had  had  occasion  to  reprove 
Miss  Willoughby  for  her  way  of  talking. 

Frances,  though  somewhat  daunted  by  her 
father's  displeasure,  made  her  defense  by  saying, 
"  O,  papa,  there  is  no  harm  in  it ;  you  should  hear 
the  Roscoe  girls  speak !  They  say  it  is  all  the 
fashion  for  even  grown  ladies  to  speak  that  way ; 
and  that  no  one  cares  a  bit  for  a  girl  nowadays 
who  can't  talk  slang." 

Mr.  Willoughby  was  angry  now.  "Frances, 
listen  to  me.  I  wish  no  quotations  of  the  sayings 
or  doings  of  the  Roscoe  girls — poor  orphan  girls, 
who  have  been  brought  up  in  a  most  careless 


124         CHILDREN  OF  THE  GREAT  KING. 

manner,  and  who  are  more  to  be  pitied  than 
Warned  for  their  faults;  but  I  will  allow  no 
daughter  of  mine  to  use,  even  in  jest,  the  phrases 
you  call  slang.  As  to  there  being  no  harm  in 
them,  I  am  the  judge  of  that,  and  consider  there 
is  immense  harm  in  young  girls  making  use  of 
language  which  would  be  tolerated  in  no  proper 
society.  Perhaps  you  might  find  a  few  school- 
boys, or  foolish  young  men,  who  would  laugh  at  a 
girl  speaking  in  that  way,  and  even  apply  some 
of  their  slang  expressions  to  her  for  doing  so ; 
but,  Frances,  believe  me,  the  men  and  women 
whose  opinions  are  at  all  worth  the  having  will 
never  admire  anything  in  a  young  girl  which  is 
calculated  to  make  her  bold  and  unfeminine.  Be 
ready  to  meet  any  emergency  calmly,  and  as  self- 
reliantly  as  you  like ;  but  be  assured,  that  in  the 
eye  of  both  God  and  man  '  a  meek  and  quiet  spirit ' 
is  '  of  great  price.'  I  speak  strongly,  because  I  feel 
the  subject  an  important  one,  and  I  hope  it  is  one 
on  which  I  shall  never  have  occasion  to  speak  to 
you  again.  I  am  glad  your  mamma  had  gone 
to  the  nursery  before  you  told  your  story,  for  I 
know  she  would  have  been  much  vexed  to  hear 
her  daughter  speaking  so  foolishly ;  and  as  I  trust 
you  will  at  once  give  up  the  practice,  I  shall  say 


CHILDREN  OF  THE   GREAT   KIXG.          125 

nothing  to  her  about  it.  Now  you  know  my 
commands  on  the  subject;  see  they  are  not  dis- 
obeyed." 

Frances  left  the  room  somewhat  sulkily;  but 
for  all  that,  she  felt  in  her  own  heart  that  her 
father  had  spoken  the  truth,  and  gave  up  the 
slang  language  even  in  jest. 

Would  that  all  young  girls  would  do  the  like, 
instead  of  following  the  fashion  of  the  foolish. 
Believe  me,  that  the  refined  and  cultivated  of 
both  sexes  shrink  from  the  girl  who,  throwing  off 
the  gentle  reserve  of  her  nature,  apes  the  manners 
and  conversation  of  men. 

Charlie  Whitmore  was  quite  right  in  saying 
that  Claude  now  took  the  lead  among  his  com- 
panions, and  was  respected  by  them  all.  His 
earnest  endeavors  to  do  right,  his  fearless  decla- 
ration that  his  wish  was  to  obey  the  will  of  God, 
all  had  an  effect ;  and  even  those  who  laughed  at 
his  principles  admired  his  conduct.  Yet  Claude 
was  no  model  boy,  too  perfect  to  be  real ;  only 
what  every  one  may  become  who,  in  the  strength 
of  the  Lord,  is  seeking  to  walk  in  the  narrow 
way.  He  was  a  quick  learner,  but,  truth  to  tell, 
he  would  far  sooner  have  been  out  playing  cricket, 
or  rambling  about  in  the  woods,  or  down  among 


126          CHILDREN  OF  THE   GREAT  KING. 

the  rocks  on  the  shore,  than  poring  over  Latin  or 
Greek.  "  Small  use  to  a  soldier,"  he  observed  to 
Mr.  Marshman. 

"  And  yet,  Claude,"  he  -replied,  "  where  will  you 
find  such  spirited  accounts  of  battles  as  in  your 
Greek  and  Latin  authors?  Once  read  the  orig- 
inal, and  you  will  acknowledge  that  even  the  best 
of  translations  are  tame." 

"  Well,  yes,"  said  Claude ;  "  to  be  sure  the 
battles  are  worth  reading,  so  I  suppose  I  must 
plod  away,  Mr.  Marshman;  but  it's  hard  work," 
he  said  with  a  laugh. 

A  want  of  steady  application  was  one  of 
Claude's  besetting  sins,  and  one  against  which 
he  had  to  wage  a  constant  warfare.  Let  him  but 
put  his  mind  to  the  subject,  and  his  powers  of 
learning  were  quick ;  but  often  time  was  squan- 
dered by  a  mere  want  of  fixing  his  thoughts  on 
what  he  had  to  do. 

Mr.  Marshman  pointed  out  to  him  this  fault, 
and  begged  him  to  beware  of  it.  "One  of  the 
commands  of  the  Great  King  to  his  children, 
Claude,"  said  he,  "is,  'Whatsoever  ye  do,  do 
it  heartily,  as  unto  the  Lord ;'  and  remember 
that  without  a  habit  of  steady  application  no 
one  will  ever  rise  to  greatness  or  usefulness  in 


CHILDREN  OF  THE   GREAT  KING.          127 

the  world.     Time  frittered  away  can   never  be 
recalled." 

Many  a  conflict  had  Claude  with  this  foe,  but 
with  the  sword  of  the  Spirit  he  overcame  it,  and 
the  letter  which  reached  Colonel  Percy  from  Mr. 
Marshman,  on  the  very  day  of  his  starting  for  the 
Crimea,  told  him  that,  with  truth  it  might  be  said, 
his  boy  was  improving  in  all  things,  "  obtaining," 
the  writer  said,  "  by  the  grace  of  God,  the  best  of 
all  victories,  that  over  himself;"  and  as  the  ac- 
counts of  Ada  told  the  same  story,  the  heart  of 
the  father  was  filled  with  joy  and  gratitude;  he 
had  good  reason  to  believe  that  his  motherless 
children  were  pressing  on  in  their  heavenly  race, 
sustained  by  the  hand  of  the  Great  King;  and 
amid  the  dangers  which  encompassed  him  Colonel 
Percy  dwelt  in  peace,  blessed  in  the  belief  that, 
were  death  to  remove  him  from  this  world,  he 
and  his  children  would  yet  meet  one  day,  through 
the  merits  of  the  Lord  Jesus,  in  the  golden  palace 
of  the  King  of  kings,  from  which  they  would  go 
out  no  more. 


128          CHILDREN  OF  THE  GREAT  KING. 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

"  His  soul  to  Him  who  gave  it  rose ; 
God  led  it  to  its  long  repose, 

Its  glorious  rest. 

And  though  the  warrior's  sun  has  set, 
Its  light  shall  linger  round  us  yet, 

Bright,  radiant,  blest." 

THE  month  of  September  was  fast  drawing  to 
an  end;  the  fresh  green  of  the  summer  foliage 
was  changed  into  the  glowing  variegated  tints  of 
autumn,  and  the  summer  heat  was  exchanged  for 
the  cool  fresh  breezes  of  the  advancing  season. 

Anxiously  did  every  one  in  those  days  wait  for 
news  from  the  allied  armies.  That  the  landing 
on  the  Crimea  had  been  successfully  effected  was 
already  known ;  but  the  next  news,  it  was  thought, 
would  be  of  an  encounter  with  the  enemy.  The 
first  account  of  it.  which  reached  Willoughby 
House  was  brought  by  Claude. 

The  lamp  was  already  lighted  in  the  drawing- 
room,  where  the  whole  party  were  assembled, 
when  a  loud  knock  at  the  house  door  drew  forth 
exclamations  of  wonder  from  the  young  people  as 


Victory!    Victory! 


CHILDREN   OF  THE   GREAT  KING.          131 

to  what  visitor  it  could  be  coming  at  that  time  of 
night,  when  suddenly  Claude  rushed  in,  waving 
his  cap  round  his  head,  and  calling  out,  "  Victory ! 
victory  !  A  famous  battle  has  been  fought  on  the 
twentieth  of  the  month  on  the  banks  of  the  Alma, 
and  we  have  beat  the  Russians  out  and  out, 
forced  them  to  retreat,  and  leave  us  masters  of 
the  field.  Hurrah!  no  soldiers  like  the  British, 
say  I." 

All  shared  his  joy  and  excitement ;  even  little 
Minnie  joined  in  the  hurrah;  but  Ada  clung  to 
him,  and  begged  him  to  tell  her  if  papa  was  safe, 
and  if  there  were  many  killed. 

He  threw  his  arm  kindly  round  her.  "Well, 
Ada  dear,  there  have  been  many  killed  and 
wounded,  of  course.  The  names  are  not  known 
yet,  but  I'm  sure,  somehow,  papa's  safe;  I  seem 
just  to  feel  he  is  so.  Don't  fear,  dear;  depend 
upon  it  we  will  get  a  letter  from  himself  soon." 

It  was  boyish  reasoning,  certainly,  and  comfort 
with  a  slight  foundation ;  but,  nevertheless,  Ada 
was  comforted,  perhaps  more  by  the  very  tone  of 
her  brother's  voice  than  by  his  words.  How 
often  is  it  the  case  that  our  worst  fears  are 
quieted  by  seeing  that  some  one  we  trust  in  does 
not  share  them!  Claude's  cheerful  words  con- 


132          CHILDREN"  OF  THE   GREAT   KING. 

veyed  assurance  to  more  than  one  of  the  party, 
allaying  the  heart-pang  with  which  Miss  Mauley 
too  had  heard  the  news. 

As  soon  as  the  excitement  had  calmed  a  little, 
Mr.  Willoughby  drew  from  Claude  an  account  of 
all  he  knew,  and  also  how  he  had  heard  it.  It 
was  easily  explained.  An  uncle  of  one  of  the 
boys  at  Mr.  Marshman's  had  come  from  London 
to  see  him,  and  had  "brought  the  news,  received 
by  telegraph  late  the  night  before.  Particulars 
were  not  given,  but  the  victory  was  stated  to  be 
a  complete  one:  the  French  and  English  armies 
had  fought  together,  side  by  side,  and  had  suc- 
ceeded, after  a  hard-fought  battle,  in  routing  the 
enemy;  and  now  it  was  supposed  that  they  would 
at  once  press  on  to  Sebastopol,  and,  if  need  be, 
besiege  it.  Mr.  Marshman  had  at  once  given 
Claude  leave  to  go  to  his  uncle's  and  tell  the 
news,  desiring  him  to  return  early  next  morning. 

With  hearts  filled  with  more  than  usually 
solemn  thoughts,  the  little  party  assembled  that 
night  at  evening  worship.  The  portion  of  Scrip- 
ture chosen  was  the  forty-sixth  psalm,  so  full  of 
the  believer's  calm  assurance  of  faith  amid  all 
dangers :  "  God  is  our  refuge  and  strength,  a 
very  present  help  in  trouble :  therefore  will  not 


CHILDREN   OF  THE  GREAT  KING.          133 

•we  fear,  though  the  earth  be  removed,  and  though 
the  mountains  be  carried  into  the  midst  of  the 
sea."  The  concluding  verse  was  specially  fitted 
to  comfort  and  sustain  the  anxious  ones:  "The 
Lord  of  hosts  is  with  us ;  the  God  of  Jacob  is  our 
refuge."  Mr.  Willoughby  read  also  the  next 
psalm,  dwelling  on  the  second  and  third  verses : 
"The  Lord  is  a  great  King  over  all  the  earth. 
He  shall  subdue  the  people  under  us,  and  the 
nations  under  our  feet." 

Not  many  days  elapsed  ere  the  anxiously  looked- 
for  letter  arrived.  Colonel  Percy  was  safe.  That 
for  some  time  was  all  that  Ada  could  comprehend ; 
but  Claude  eagerly  devoured  the  contents.  His 
father  had  made  a  hurried  plan  of  the  battle-field, 
pointing  out  the  different  spots  where  his  own 
regiment  had  been  most  hotly  engaged.  "The 
bullets  were  flying  thick  enough,  Claude,"  he 
wrote;  "and  I  only  wish  you  could  have  seen 
how  bravely  our  soldiers  fought.  Many  of  my 
loved  comrades  have  fallen  fighting  nobly.  Young 
hearts,  and  brave,  lie  low,  who  rose  that  morning 
in  the  full  vigor  of  manhood.  Peace  be  to  their 
memories !  they  rest  in  a  soldier's  grave.  Ah ! 
how  many  sad  hearts  there  will  be  in  our  own 
beloved  country,  even  in  the  midst  of  the  joy  of 


134:         CHILDREN  OF  THE  GREAT  KING. 

victory !  Thanks  be  to  the  Great  King,  that  he 
hath  preserved  me  in  safety,  taking  hold  of  shield 
and  buckler,  standing  up  for  mine  help.  We  are 
all  eager  to  be  on,  and  long  to  stand  before  the 
walls  of  Sebastopol. 

"  Ada  would  have  liked  to  have  seen  some  of  the 
beautiful  vineyards  we  passed  through  shortly 
before  the  fight  began.  Our  men  pulled  the 
grapes  in  handfuls,  and  even  when  fighting  might 
be  seen  holding  bunches  of  them  in  their  teeth 
while  they  fired  at  the  enemy.  Dear  children,  often 
and  often,  in  the  very  thick  of  the  battle,  your 
faces  rose  before  my  eyes ;  but  I  was  enabled  to 
commend  you,  in  faith,  to  the  King  of  kings. 
How  Claude  would  have  liked  to  have  been  by 
my  side !  and  I  think  I  hear  him  say,  as  he  reads 
this,  *  Wouldn't  I  just  1 '  But,  truth  to  tell,  I  fear 
much  his  father's  hand  would  scarcely  have  been 
so  steady,  nor  his  heart  have  beat  so  calmly,  had 
he  been  so. 

"  One  brave  young  officer,  little  more  than  a 
boy,  fell  close  beside  me ;  in  his  hand  he  bore  the 
colors  of  his  regiment.  From  one  eminence,  on 
which  a  breastwork  had  been  thrown  up,  the  ene- 
my had  been  routed ;  and  the  brave  boy  dashed 
on,  eager  to  plant  his  colors  there.  In  the  act  of 


CHILDREN   OF  THE   GREAT  KING.          135 

doing  so  a  ball  struck  him ;  he  fell,  even  in  death 
grasping  the  crimson  flag  intrusted  to  his  care. 
A  soldier  sprang  forward,  and,  raising  the  color, 
planted  it  again,  claiming  the  spot  for  his  regi- 
ment. 

"  Alas !  ere  now  there  will  be  heavy  hearts  in 
his  Scottish  home;  burning  tears  shed,  I  doubt 
not,  for  the  brave  blithe  boy.  But  he  sleeps  in 
Jesus.  I  saw  something  of  him  at  Varna,  and 
recognized  in  him  the  marks  which  distinguished 
the  children  of  the  Great  King ;  and  often  have  I 
wished,  and  fondly  dreamed,  that  he  and  my 
Claude  might  one  day  be  acquainted.  Not  long 
before  the  battle  he  said  to  one  who  knew  him 
well :  '  If  I  fall,  tell  them  all  at  home  I  know  that 
the  blood  of  Jesus  cleanseth  from  all  sin.'  And 
now,  why  should  we  mourn  that  his  young  life, 
which  was  so  bright  and  unclouded,  should  prove 
so  short  ?  His  work  is  accomplished,  his  warfare 
o'er :  and  now  he  rests  in  the  palace  of  the  Great 
King,  beholding  the  Son,  through  whom  he  over- 
came, face  to  face,  where  wars  and  rumors  of  wars 
are  heard  no  more,  but  all  is  righteousness,  and 
peace,  and  joy  for  evermore. 

"Dear  children,  press  on,  looking  unto  Jesus. 
Soon,  how  soon  none  can  tell,  may  the  sum- 


136         CHILDREN  OF  THE  GREAT  KING. 

mons  come :  *  The  Master  is  come,  and  calleth  for 
thee.' 

"  The  Captain  Ainsworth  I  wrote  of  in  my  last 
is  strong  again,  and  fought  bravely,  escaping  un- 
touched. Our  loss  is  computed  at  nearly  two 
thousand  in  killed  and  wounded.  The  French 
have  suffered  much  less,  some  say  scarce  more 
than  twelve  hundred,  others  believe  not  nearly  so 
much.  The  loss  sustained  by  the  enemy  is  thought 
to  be  very  great.  I  hope  to  write  soon  again. 
Dear  children,  you  are  ever  in  my  thoughts ;  and 
I  know  how  fondly  you  remember  your  loving 
father." 

The  letter  formed  the  principal  topic  of  the  day, 
and  Claude  found  an  attentive  audience  in  his 
school  companions  as  he  told  them  the  story  of 
the  boy  officer,  who  met  his  death  so  early,  nobly 
fighting  for  his  country.  And  Arthur  listened  in 
silence  to  the  story ;  and  long  after  the  others  had 
ceased  to  talk  of  it  he  sat  and  dreamed  of  the  child 
of  the  Great  King,  who  had  gone  from  the  bloody 
field  of  battle  straight  up  to  the  golden  palace ; 
and  the  boy  thought,  though  he  said  it  not,  that 
ere  long  he  would  meet  him  there,  though  the 
road  which  led  to  it,  in  his  case,  was  from  no  far- 
off  battle-field,  but  from  his  own  lovely  Devonshire 


CHILDREN  OF  THE  GREAT  KING.  187 

home ;  and  in  his  heart  he  was  glad  it  was  so,  for 
he  loved  to  think  that_  his  last  look  on  earth  would 
rest  on  the  pleasant  scenes  and  loved  faces  he  held 
so  dear.  Then,  one  moment  absent  from  the  body, 
he  would  be  present  with  the  Lord,  amid  the  com- 
pany of  redeemed  ones  in  glory,  and  in  the  pres- 
ence of  God,  the  Judge  of  all,  and  of  Jesus  the 
great  Mediator. 


138         CHILDREN-  OF  THE  GREAT  KING. 


CHAPTER  XV. 

"  The  man  that  looks  on  glass, 

On  it  may  rest  his  eye ; 
Or,  if  he  pleases,  through  it  pass, 

And  hence  the  heavens  espy." 

"  REALLY,  Ada,  I  cannot  allow  such  work  to 
pass;  it  must  all  be  picked  out  and  done  over 
again,  and  that  before  you  go  to  walk.  So  set 
about  it  at  once,  and  let  me  find  it  finished  when 
I  come  back."  And  so  saying,  Mrs.  Willoughby 
left  the  room,  leaving  Ada  gazing  at  the  work  she 
held  in  her  hand,  with  a  most  disconsolate  look, 
most  unlike  the  pleasing  bright  smile  usually  seen 
on  her  face. 

Mrs.  Willoughby  prided  herself  on  being  a  good 
needlewoman,  not  merely  clever  at  all  sorts  of 
fancy  work,  but  especially  at  useful  plain  work, 
too  much  despised  by  the  ladies  of  the  present 
day.  She  was  also  determined  that  Frances 
should  be  taught  to  sew  well,  and  had  always 
taken  that  department  of  her  education  on  her- 
self; and  had  so  far  succeeded  that  Frances  bid 


CHILDREN   OF  THE   GREAT  K1XG.          139 

fair  to  equal,  if  not  surpass,  her  mamma  at  her 
needle. 

P 

With  Ada  it  was  very  different:  she  was  far 
from  a  good  worker,  and  had  no  love  for  it ;  and 
the  sewing  in  the  parlor,  with  her  aunt  for  a 
teacher,  was  always  looked  forward  to  with  dread. 
But  this  day  was  worse  than  usual,  and  the  tears 
fell  fast  as  Ada  looked  first  at  the  portion  of 
work  to  he  done,  and  then  at  the  bright  autumn 
sun  shining,  which  seemed  to  invite  her  to  come 
out  and  enjoy  it. 

She  saw  Frances  and  Arthur  across  the  park 
with  Miss  Manley,  and  longed  to  throw  down  her 
work  and  join  them ;  but  her  task  must  be  done, 
and  so  she  worked  away,  although,  we  must  con- 
fess, with  a  bad  enough  grace,  and  a  feeling  as  if 
she  were  just  then  a  very  ill-used  person.  There 
were  angry  thoughts  in  her  heart ;  the  stitching 
was  far  too  difficult  for  her ;  her  aunt  had  been 
unjust ;  in  short,  any  one  was  to  be  blamed 
rather  than  herself;  and  if  a  still  small  voice 
whispered,  "Doest  thou  well  to  be  angry?  the 
fault  was  all  your  own,"  she  strove  hard  not  to 
hear  it. 

Ah,  Ada,  in  turning  away  your  ears  from  that 
voice,  you  are  turning  away  from  the  voice  of  the 


140         CHILDREN  OF  THE  GREAT  KING. 

Great  King  himself.  Rather  listen,  and  take  heed 
to  the  gently  spoken  admonition;  the  stone  on 
which  you  have  stumbled  is  offended  pride,  and  it 
is  a  hard  one  to  overcome ;  but  one  word  of  en- 
treaty to  your  Guide,  and  at  his  command  it  will 
disappear. 

The  parlor  door  opened,  and  Ada,  whose  work 
was  now  almost  finished,  looked  up,  expecting  to 
see  Mrs.  Willoughby,  but  to  her  surprise  saw  her 
uncle.  "  Ada,"  he  said,  "  your  aunt  asked  me  to 
tell  you  that,  as  some  visitors  have  arrived,  she 
cannot  come  to  you;  but  if  your  work  is  done 
you  may  go  to  the  garden,  and  wait  there  till 
Miss  Manley  and  the  others  return  from  their 
walk." 

Ada's  face  expressed  no  joy  at  the  permission. 
"  My  work  is  not  done  yet,  and,  besides,  I  don't 
care  about  going  to  the  garden  to-day,"  was  her 
reply. 

The  tone  of  her  voice  amazed  her  uncle,  so 
unlike  was  it  to  the  gentle  one  in  which  she  gen- 
erally spoke,  and,  somewhat  displeased,  he  was 
moving  away  without  saying  any  more,  but  he 
paused  ere  doing  so.  His  great  desire  was  to 
act  a  true  father's  part  to  these  children,  and 
he  asked  himself,  Would  her  own  father  have 


CHILDREN   OF  THE   GEEAT  KING.          141 

thus  left  his  child  without  a  word  of  warning 
or  reproof?  He  drew  in  his  chair  and  sat 
down.  "  What  is-  wrong  to-day,  Ada  ? "  he 
said  gently.  "Is  the  work  so  very  difficult,  or 
what  is  it  ?  " 

"  Yes,  it  is  so  very  difficult  to  do  it  nicely,  and 
aunt  is  so  hard  to  please,"  said  Ada ;  "  and  I  can't 
Lear  to  sew."  And  further  words  were  stopped 
by  tears. 

"  Ada,"  said  her  uncle  very  gravely,  "  did  you 
try  to  do  the  work  as  well  as  you  could  ?  Did 
you  try  with  all  your  heart  ?  Tell  me." 

No ;  Ada  could  not  say  she  had  tried  much  that 
day.  She  did  not  like  sewing. 

"And  how  about  pleasing  the  Great  King, 
Ada?"  said  Mr.  Willoughby.  "Do  you  think 
he  is  pleased  with  you  to-day?  Did  you  not 
think  of  trying  to  do  your  work  well  to  please 
him?" 

My  work,  uncle !  O  no.  How  could  my  doing 
it  well  be  anything  to  him  ?  " 

"  Ada,"  replied  Mr.  Willoughby,  "  do  you  not 
know  it  is  written, '  Whatsoever  you  do,  do  it  as 
to  the  Lord?'  The  most  commonplace  work 
may  be,  and  by  the  child  of  God  ought  to  be, 
done  to  his  glory;  and  certainly  if,  instead  of 


142          CHILDREN  OF  THE   GREAT  KING. 

idling  over  your  work,  and  so  displeasing  your 
aunt  and  getting  yourself  into  trouble,  you  had 
taken  up  your  sewing,  and  resolved  to  try  to 
do  your  very  best,  (because,  as  a  child  of  the 
Great  King,  every  duty  you  have  to  perform 
you  must  do  to  him,)  you  would  have  found 
the  fancied  difficulty  vanish,  and  have  been 
the  happy,  cheerful  little  girl  that  you  usually 
are." 

Ada's  angry  spirit  was  quieted  now.  "  I  never 
thought,"  she  owned,  "of  doing  my  work  well 
to  please  the  Great  King,  but  another  time  I'll 
think  of  it,  and  I  know  it  will  help  me;  only 
it  seems  such  a  very  small  thing,  I  can  scarce 
fancy  that  the  Great  King  will  care  to  have 
me  to  do  it.  Please,  uncle,  repeat  that  text 
again." 

" '  Whatsoever  ye  do,  do  it  heartily,  as  unto  the 
Lord.'  It  is  in  the  third  chapter  of  Colossians; 
and,  Ada,  there  are  some  lines  on  the  subject, 
written  nearly  three  hundred  years  ago,  which 
you  must  learn  some  day.  Here  is  a  verse  or 
two: 

'  Teach  me,  my  God  and  King, 

In  all  things  thee  to  see ; 
And  what  I  do  in  anything, 

To  do  it  as  to  thee.' 


CHILDREN  OF  THE   GREAT   KING.          143 

And  this  quaint  old  writer,  George  Herbert,  whose 
writings  you  will  read  some  day,  maintains,  and 
rightly  too,  that 


'  Who  sweeps  a  room  as  for  God's  cause, 
Makes  that  and  the  action  fine.' " 


"  Sweeps  a  room  I  O  uncle  !  and  yet,  I  suppose, 
whatsoever  ye  do,  may  mean  that  too.  O  I  wish 
I  had  only  thought  of  it  sooner.  Then  perhaps  I 
would  not  have  displeased  the  King  so  much  as  I 
have  done  to-day.  You  don't  know  what  very 
wrong  feelings  I  had ;  I  was  so  angry."  And  the 
child  threw  herself  into  her  uncle's  arms. 

"  Ah,  Ada,  you  must  seek  the  forgiveness  of  the 
Great  King,  pleading  the  merits  of  his  Son.  Had 
you  sought  his  aid  when  you  felt  the  wrong  feel- 
ings, it  would  not  have  been  refused.  Remember, 
the  King's  daughter  must  be  all  glorious  within, 
made  so  by  Him  who  alone  can  do  it ;  and  then, 
but  not  till  then,  shall  she  enter  into  the  King's 
palace." 

From  that  day  Mrs.  "Willoughby  noticed  a 
decided  improvement  in  Ada's  working  powers; 
and  the  sewing  hour,  once  so  much  disliked,  now 
passed  pleasantly.  More  and  more  the  child  of 
the  kingdom  was  learning  to  act  on  the  grand 


144         CHILDREN  OF  THE   GREAT  KING. 

Christian  principle,  "  Whatsoever  ye  do,  do  all  to 
the  glory  of  God." 

The  lesson  was  learned,  it  is  true,  after  many 
failures ;  but  still  it  was  learned ;  and  thus,  step 
by  step,  the  heavenly  Guide  was  leading  on  his 
child  in  the  right  way  to  the  city  of  habitations, 
whose  builder  and  maker  is  God. 


CHILDREN  OF  THE   GREAT  KING.          145 


CHAPTER  XVI. 

"  Grief  dwells  in  France  and  England 

For  many  a  noble  son ; 
Yet  louder  than  the  sorrow, 

'  Thy  will,  0  God,  be  done.' 
From  desolate  homes  is  rising 

One  prayer :  Let  carnage  cease. 
On  friends  and  foes  have  mercy, 

O  Lord,  and  give  us  peace." 

DECEMBER'S  snow  lay  thick  on  the  ground ; 
biting  cold  blew  the  northern  wind,  driving  along 
the  falling  snow  and  sleet  in  the  very  faces  of  the 
brave  men  who  stood  for  hours  by  day  and  night 
in  the  trenches  at  Sebastopol.  Hard  work  it  was, 
requiring  a  far  greater  amount  of  courage  to 
endure  than  that  called  forth  by  the  hot  excite- 
ment of  a  close  conflict  on  the  battle-field.  A 
patient  spirit  as  well  as  a  brave  one  was  needed 
to  bear  up  against  both  piercing  cold  and  cannon 
balls.  Alas !  many  lives,  worn  out  by  excessive 
toil  and  exposure  to  the  inclement  weather,  were 
lost  in  these  winter  days. 

Side  by  side,  in  a  scantily  furnished  tent,  wait- 
ing for  the  hour  to  come  round  which  was  to 


146          CHILDREN  OF  THE  GREAT  KING. 

summon  them  to  exchange  their  place  in  the  tent 
for  one  in  the  trenches,  sat  Colonel  Percy  and 
his  friend  Herbert  Ainsworth.  Both  sat  lost  in 
thought.  Colonel  Percy  had  just  finished  a  letter 
to  Claude,  and  the  faces  of  both  children  were 
vividly  before  his  eye,  the  fair-haired  girl  and  the 
dark  noble  boy ;  and  with  theirs  another  face  was 
mingled,  more  fair,  more  beautiful  than  either — it 
was  that  cf  his  departed  wife,  gentle,  loving, 
unselfish ;  and  as  he  listened  to  the  booming 
cannon,  and  thought  of  the  long  weary  hours  of 
suspense  she  would  have  suffered  on  his  account 
had  she  been  alive,  he  was  able  to  thank 
his  God  and  hers  that  she  had  been  spared 
the  trial — had  been  taken  away  from  the  evil  to 
come. 

The  thought  that  she  was  at  rest  in  the  golden 
city  acted  on  his  heart  as  a  gentle  chord,  in- 
viting and  drawing  his  thoughts  from  earthly  to 
heavenly  things.  Above  the  noise  of  cannons' 
roar,  and  all  the  din  of  warfare,  he  heard  the 
sounds  of  the  harpers  before  the  throne,  and 
the  joyful  song  of  praise  of  the  redeemed  chor- 
isters of  heaven. 

How  near  the  eternal  world  appeared  to  him  as 
he  mused  thus !  and  how  narrow  the  space  which 


CHILDREN  OF  THE  GREAT  KING.          147 

separated  him  from  the  Church  in  heaven !    The 
words  of  the  beautiful  hymn  rose  to  his  lips : 

11  One  army  of  the  living  God, 

To  his  commands  we  bow  : 
Part  of  the  host  have  crossed  the  flood, 

And  part  are  crossing  now." 

There  was  comfort  to  him  in  the  thought.  He 
loved  at  all  times  to  realize  the  communion  of 
saints ;  but  time  was  passing,  the  hour  of  duty  had 
come  round.  The  colonel  got  up,  and  touching 
the  arm  of  his  companion,  who  sat  lost  in  a  reverie, 
said,  "Come,  Ainsworth,  we  must  start  for  the 
trenches  despite  wind  and  snow." 

Herbert  Ainsworth  rose  at  once,  but  it  took  him 
a  while  to  rouse  himself  from  his  dreams,  and 
return  to  the  work-day  world  around  him.  Not 
that  his  day-dreams  had  been  altogether  pleasant, 
for  they  were  strongly  mixed  with  remorse.  One 
sweet  loving  face,  with  its  deep  blue  trusting  eyes, 
ever  seemed  to  look  at  him  with  a  glance  of  grave 
reproach,  and  tell  him  that  his  selfishness  had 
blighted  a  bright  young  life,  and  caused  deep  sor- 
row to  a  heart  which  had  loved  him  only  too  well. 

Yes !  now  when  it  was  too  late ;  now,  when  he 
feared  that  Mary  Manley  had  learned  to  despise 
his  very  name,  Herbert  Ainsworth  awoke  to  the 


148         CHILDREN  OF  THE  GREAT  KING. 

consciousness  of  her  real  worth,  and  of  the  true 
heroism  of  the  heart  he  had  willfully  thrown  from 
him.  He  traced  the  motive  of  her  action  now  to 
its  true  source,  obedience  to  the  Great  King ;  and 
he  himself,  as  yet  but  a  beginner  in  the  school  of 
the  heavenly  Teacher,  wondered  at  the  strong 
faith  and  stronger  love  which  enabled  Mary  Man- 
ley  thus  to  deny  herself,  .in  order  to  do  what  she 
saw  was  the  will  of  God  concerning  her.  If  his 
love  to  her  had  ever  grown  cold,  it  was  warm 
enough  now;  and  the  knowledge  that  she  still 
loved  him  would  have  brightened  up  all  around 
him.  That  the  fact  was  hid  from  him,  was  but  a 
jjist  retribution  for  his  past  conduct;  but  even  as 
it  was,  the  spark  of  hope — which  somehow  would 
not  die — that  perchance  she  still  thought  of,  still 
prayed  for  him,  sustained  and  strengthened  him 
to  bear  up  and  fight  on,  till,  with  a  name  renowned 
for  brave  ^deeds,  he  might  claim  her  as  his  own,  or 
at  least  seek  and  obtain  forgiveness  of  the  past. 
Something  whispered  to  him,  that  woman's  love, 
once  given,  was  not  lightly  removed ;  and  so,  with 
that  sweet  face  ever  present  in  imagination,  Her- 
bert worked  away"  in  the  trenches,  and  bore  up 
unflinchingly  amid  hardships,  new  indeed  to  many 
who  underwent  them  all. 


CHILDREN   OF  THE   GREAT  KING.          149 

Brave  men !  how  many  earnest  prayers  were 
offered  up  on  their  behalf  from  British  homes,  and 
offered,  blessed  be  Gfod,  not  in  vain;  and  none 
more  earnest  were  uttered  than  those  which  rose 
from  the  hearts  of  the  children  we  write  of  in  Wil- 
loughby  House — those  children  of  the  Great  King. 
Often  in  those  December  days,  Claude,  Ada,  and 
Arthur  met  together,  and  talked  of  the  scenes 
enacting  at  Sebastopol;  and,  as  accounts  reached 
them  of  the  dreadful  cold,  the  suffering,  and  the 
sickness  which  prevailed,  their  hearts  saddened ; 
and  their  very  powerlessness  to  help,  and  the  very 
strength  of  their  pity,  led  them  to  do  that  which 
proved  more  powerful  than  any  other  thing  they 
could  have  done — to  beseech  the  Lord,  who  had 
all  power,  to  arise  and  help,  for  Christ's  sake. 

"Ada,"  said  Arthur  one  day,  "could  we  not 
pray  more  for  the  brave  soldiers  than  we  do? 
Look  here,  see  what  the  Great  King  tells  us,  in 
his  Word,  about  the  power  of  prayer.  The  Israel- 
ites were  engaged,  under  the  command  of  Joshua, 
in  fighting  with  the  men  of  Amalek.  For  long  it 
was  doubtful  which  side  would  get  the  victory ; 
now  one  side  prevailed,  now  another.  From  the 
top  of  a  neighboring  hill  three  people  watched  the 
battle ;  they  were  Moses,  Aaron,  and  Hur.  Moses 


150          CHILDREN  OF  THE  GREAT  KING. 

prayed  to  God ;  and  when  he  prayed  the  Israelites 
prevailed ;  when  from  weariness  he  ceased  the 
Amalekites  prevailed ;  and  so,  as  Aaron  saw  how 
tired  Moses  had  become,  he  made  him  sit  down, 
while  he  and  Hur  held  up  his  hands.  He  prayed 
steadily ;  and  Joshua  and  the  people  of  Israel  dis- 
comfited Amalek  and  his  people  with  the  edge  of 
the  sword,  You  see  what  prayer  did  then,  Ada, 
and  perhaps  it  will  do  so  still ;  nay,  we  know  for 
certain  it  will  now,"  said  the  child  reverentially, 
"  for  Jesus  has  said,  *  Whatsoever  ye  shall  ask  in 
my  name,  I  will  do  it.'  " 

And  so,  in  simple  words,  but  in  full  assurance 
of  faith,  the  children  besought  the  Great  King  to 
sustain  and  comfort  the  soldiers,  and  give  them 
victory  over  all  their  enemies;  and  their  prayers 
ascended  and  mingled  with  those  which  were 
offered  up  from  many  a  household  for  the  same 
object.  And  the  answer  came;  not  at  first,  in 
victory  and  cessation  of  the  war,  but  in  the  in- 
creasing patience  and  long-suffering  endurance 
evinced  by  the  noble  army  before  Sebastopol,  and 
in  the  bold  testimony  borne  by  many  a  soldier  of 
the  cross,  even  with  his  last  breath,  to  the  power 
of  real  religion  to  uphold  under  all  trials,  and 
remove  the  fear  of  death. 


CHILDREN   OF  THE  GREAT  KING.          151 


CHAPTER  XVII. 

"  He  who  his  Son,  most  dear  and  loved, 

Gave  up  for  us  to  die, 
Shall  he  not  all  things  freely  give 

That  goodness  can  supply  ? 
Behold  the  best,  the  greatest  gift 

Of  everlasting  love  I 
Behold  the  pledge  of  peace  below, 

And  perfect  bliss  above  1 " 

THE  Christmas  holidays  had  begun :  Claude  was 
at  his  uncle's;  and  some  relations  of  Mrs.  Wil- 
loughby's,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Carew,  with  their  two 
young  daughters  and  a  boy  about  Arthur's  age, 
had  come  to  remain  till  the  New  Year;  so  the 
party  at  Willoughby  House  was  a  large  and 
pleasant  one. 

A  slight  covering  of  snow  lay  on  meadow  and 
hill,  and  the  frost  had  for  some  time  been  more 
severe  than  it  usually  is  in  the  south  of  England ; 
but  though  some  might  grumble  at  the  unwonted 
cold,  not  so  did  the  youngsters  at  •Willoughby. 
Snow-balling  and  skating  were  pleasing  enough 

for  some  of  the  party,  and  the  exhilarating  air  and 
10 


152          CHILDREN  OF  THE   GREAT  KING. 

"beautiful  scenery  more  than  satisfied  the  others ; 
and  all,  from  little  toddling  Minnie,  (who  thought 
the  snow  was  sugar,  and  insisted  on  tasting  it,) 
regretted  when  the  too  early  setting  sun  recalled 
them  home,  and  loved  to  linger  as  long  as  possible 
watching  the  glowing  colors  that  painted  the 
clouds  which  rested  on  the  hill-tops,  and  glist- 
ened on  the  pure  white  snow.  And  Arthur,  as 
he  gazed,  fancied  that  right  behind  the  floating 
golden  clouds  lay  the  entrance  to  the  city  where 
dwelt  the  King  of  glory. 

Colonel  Percy's  letters  afforded  abundant  topics 
of  conversation  to  the  whole  party.  Claude  never 
wearied  of  repeating  the  details  of  the  noble  charge 
at  Balaklava  on  the  twenty-fifth  of  October,  which 
his  father  had  written  to  him,  describing  in  glow- 
ing terms  the  glorious  appearance  of  the  British 
squadrons  under  the  command  of  Lord  Cardigan, 
as  they  dashed  across  the  plain  in  obedience  to 
orders,  exposed  as  they  were  to  the  heavy  fire  of 
the  enemy  on  411  sides,  and  engaged  in  an  attack 
which  made  the  world  wonder.  Alas,  alas !  ere 
the  splendid  brigade  returned  to  the  lines  half  its 
numbers  lay*  dead  on  the  field.  "  But,"  said 
Claude  with  sparkling  eyes,  "  they  died  at  their 
post  of  duty;  and  what  more  glorious  death 


CHILDREN  OF  THE   GREAT  KING.          153 

can  a  soldier  desire  than  to  fall  on  the  field  of 
battle?" 

In  the  midst  of  Claude's  enthusiastic  descrip- 
tions Ada's  gentle  voice  was  sometimes  heard. 
"  O,  Claude,  but  war  is  a  dreadful  thing !  Think, 
only  think  of  the  desolation  and  misery  which  the 
report  of  that  awful  loss  will  cause  to  so  many 
hearts,  Leaving  parents  childless,  wives  widows, 
and,  Claude,  perhaps  very  many  children  orphans." 

But  Claude  stoutly  maintained,  in  spite  of  all 
that,  and  much  as  he  felt  for  the  relations  of  those 
who  fell,  "  Still,  Ada,  there  must  be  great  conso- 
lation for  them  in  the  thought  that  their  friends 
fell  doing  their  duty,  fighting  for  their  country  ;" 
and,  led  on  by  her  brother's  words,  the  next 
moment  would  find  Ada  listening  with  all  atten- 
tion to  his  account  of  the  battle  of  Inkerman, 
telling  how,  in  the  dark  foggy  morning  of  the 
fifth  of  November,  the  Russians  had  attacked  the 
British  troops  at  Inkerman,  and  how  nobly  (though 
somewhat  taken  by  surprise)  they  had  fought, 
often  carrying  on  the  fearful  struggle  in  a  hand 
to  hand  combat;  how  the  enemy  was  repulsed, 
then  once  more  made  a  new  attack ;  how  the 
French  army  hastened  to  share  the  battle;  and 
how  for  seven  hours  the  combat  continued,  the 


154         CHILDREN"  OF  THE  GREAT  KING. 

carnage  on  both  sides  very  great,  the  ground 
strewn  with  the  dead ;  but  -how  in  the  end  the 
Rtissians  fled  in  disorder.  The  victory  was  a 
great  one,  but  it  was  gained  at  a  fearful  price. 

The  girl's  tears  fell  fast  as  Claude  spoke.  The 
Carews  had  seen  the  Guards  leave  London,  a 
noble  sight,  and  now  could  only  picture  them  as 
lying  powerless  in  death,  as  that  regiment  had 
suffered  even  more  than  others  at  Inkerman, 
drawing  from  their  noble  commander  (as  Colonel 
Percy  wrote)  an  expression  of  bitter  regret  that, 
while  so  many  of.  his  friends  had  perished,  he 
should  have  survived,  saying,  "  It  is  not  my  fault 
if  I  am  not  among  them ;"  showing,  as  he  spoke, 
his  clothing  riddled  with  balls  and  grapeshot. 

The  long  winter  evenings  were  not  spent  in 
idleness,  nor  in  mere  selfish  gratification  round 
the  blazing  fire,  in  the  tastefully  adorned,  warmly 
carpeted  and  curtained  drawing-room  of  Wil- 
loughby  House.  The  brave  men  suffering  from 
cold  and  privations  in  the  Crimea  were  not  for- 
gotten ;  and  all  hands  were  busily  employed 
working  warm  articles  of  dress  to  be  sent  out  in 
a  box  to  Colonel  Percy  for  distribution  among 
the  soldiers  of  his  regiment.  For  some  time 
Frances,  Ada,  Mrs.  Willoughby,  and  Miss  Manley 


CHILDREN   OF  THE   GREAT  KING.          155 

had  been  busy  at  the  work,  and  a  good  collection  of 
warm  comforters,  chest  preservers,  muffetees,  and 
stockings  was  already  finished;  and  as  many 
friends  had  come  forward  and  volunteered  to 
help,  the  articles  were  increasing  daily ;  and  the 
children  saw  with  delight  that  a  much  larger 
box  than  was  at  first  anticipated  would  have  to 
be  got. 

Two  or  three  times,  while  the  Carews  were 
with  them,  the  Willoughbys  invited  several  of 
the  young  people  from  the  neighborhood,  and  had 
a  large  working  party — one  of  the  party  reading 
aloud  some  favorite  book,  or  relating  an  instruct- 
ive story,  while  the  others  plied  their  needles. 
Ada's  dislike  of  work  was  overcome  now,  and  she 
felt  obliged  to  her  aunt  for  having  taught  her  to 
knit,  as  she  was  thus  enabled  to  make  many 
warm  articles,  which  otherwise  she  could  not 
have  done.  But  all  declared  that  the  handiest 
among  the  girls  was  Frances;  she  was  quite  in 
her  element,  and  most  useful  in  shaping  and  ar- 
ranging work  for  others.  At  first  she  had  entered 
into  the  plan  more  as  an  amusement  than  any 
other  thing;  but  as  she  worked  on  she  felt*a 
double  pleasure  in  the  thought  that  she  was 
doing  something  to  help  her  fellow-creatures. 


156         CHILDREN  OF  THE  GREAT  KING. 

Mr.  Hole's  words  were  not  altogether  forgotten, 
and  sometimes,  in  the  midst  of  her  work,  she 
would  start  at  finding  herself  inwardly  repeating 
the  words,  "Inasmuch  as  ye  did  it  not  to  one  of 
these  my  brethren,  ye  did  it  not  to  me:"  then, 
half  ashamed  of  thinking  of  these  things,  she 
would  begin  to  hum  some  lively  air,  and  hope 
she  wasn't  going  to  turn  dreadfully  good,  like 
Ada  or  Arthur. 

But  she  never  mocked  them  now  for  speaking 
and  thinking  of  the  Great  King,  as  she  had  once 
done;  only  she  wished — O  so  much! — that  Ar- 
thur's eyes  would  not  look  so  very  bright,  nor 
his  cheek  have  such  a  delicate  pink  hue ;  and 
sometimes  the  thought  that  perhaps  the  King  he 
loved  so  well  would  take  him  away  to  dwell  with 
himself,-  filled  her  with  terror ;  for  better  than 
father,  mother,  or  little  sister,  Frances  loved  her 
gentle  brother.  O  no,  she  could  not  live  without 
him ;  and  so,  refusing  to  entertain  the  idea  of  his 
being  ill,  she  would  never  listen  to  her  mother 
when  she  spoke  of  her  fears  that  Arthur's  health 
was  failing,  saying,  "  There  is  nothing  the  matter 
with  him,  mamma,  but  just  moping."  But  even 
while  she  spoke  thus  her  eyes  filled  with  tears, 
and  she  would  run  out  of  the  room  to  hide  them. 


CHILDREN  OF  THE   GREAT   KING.          157 

Mr.  Willoughby  watched  his  daughter  closely, 
and  observed  the  softening  of  her  nature ;  and 
the  glad  hope  filled.his  heart  that  one  day  would 
see  her  also  a  child  of  the  Great  King. 

Mary  and  Jessie  Carew  were  two  gentle,  lady- 
like girls,  about  the  ages  of  Frances  and  Ada. 
Skillful  workers,  they  helped  largely  to  fill  the 
box,  and  never  wearied  of  hearing  Ada  and 
Claude  tell  the  stories  of  the  war  written  home 
by  their  father.  The  children  of  religious  parents, 
they  were  well  taught  in  sacred  things ;  but  they 
had  not  yet  learned,  as  Ada  did,  to  realize  Jesus 
as  an  ever-present  guide  to  them.  Reverently  as 
they  spoke  and  thought  of  him,  he  was  yet  afar 
off,  more  respected  as  the  Saviour  of  their  parents 
than  loved  and  known  as  their  own.  In  close 
companionship  with  Arthur,  Claude,  and  Ada, 
they  could  not  fail  to  see  that  the  motive  of  all 
their  actions  was  love  to  Jesus,  the  Son  of  the 
Great  King  of  whom  they  loved  to  speak;  and 
as  they  listened  to  their  converse,  new  views  and 
thoughts  of  Jesus  dawned  in  their  hearts.  And 
when  they  both  could  say,  in  truth,  ere  many 
years  had  passed,  that  the  God  and  Saviour  01 
their  parents  was  theirs  also,  they  loved  to  tell 
that  the  first  time  they  really  began  to  desire  to 


158          CHILDREN  OF  THE   GHEAT   KING. 

0 

know  Jesus  as  their  friend  and  Saviour  was  dur- 
ing their  Christmas  visit  to  Willoughby  House, 
when  they  saw  how  happy  Ada  and  the  boys 
were  in  the  full  confidence  of  being  children  of 
the  Great  King. 

The  party  at  Willoughby  House  was  to  break 
up  on  the  second  day  of  the  new  year,  and  the 
box  was  to  be  packed  up  and  sent  off  on  the  first, 
so  that  there  was  no  time  to  be  lost ;  articles  had 
to  be  finished,  and  books  (which  Colonel  Percy 
had  said  would  be  very  acceptable)  to  be  got. 
All  were  therefore  fully  occupied,  and  many 
pleasant  conversations  took  place  while  the  hands 
were  busy. 

Arthur,  when  wearied  with  playing  with  Claude 
and  Alfred  Carew,  would  often  join  the  working 
party,  and  take  part  in  their  talk;  and  some  of 
the  girls  remarked  that,  whatever  subject  they 
might  be  talking  about  when  he  joined  them,  ere 
long  he  led  the  conversation,  almost  imperceptibly, 
to  the  Son  of  the  Great  King,  who  came  so  many 
hundred  years  ago  into  the  world,  and  lay,  a  little 
babe,  in  his  mother's  arms  in  the  manger  at  Beth- 
lehem. The  best  of  all  Christmas  presents,  he 
said  to  Ada,  was  surely  this,  God's  unspeakable 
gift. 


CHILDREN   OF  THE   GKEAT   KING.          159 

Among  the  contributors  to  the  box  were  many 
of  the  villagers,  eager  to  give  what  little  help  they 
could  to  the  soldiers.  Even  blind  Mrs.  Barnes 
sent  some  pairs  of  warm  stockings  of  her  own 
knitting,  and  little  Willie  brought  a  new  com- 
forter to  Arthur,  and  asked  him  to  send  it.  "  Fa- 
ther gave  it  me  for  myself,"  said  he,  "but  the 
poor  soldiers  need  it  more  than  me ;  and  so,  when 
I  asked  father  if  I  might  give  it  them,  he  said  yes. 
Please,  sir,  to  take  it,  for  it's  the  only  thing  I 
have."  The  humble  gift  was  not  refused,  and  the 
offering,  in  the  eyes  of  the  Lord,  might  not  have 
been  the  least  costly  in  the  box. 

The  box  was  filled  and  sent  off.  Holiday  time 
had  come  to  an  end,  and  a  new  year  had  begun, 
on  the  events  of  which,  whether  sad  or  joyful,  the 
blessing  of  the  Great  King  was  earnestly  implored, 
and  the  party  at  Willoughby  House  dispersed, 
never  all  to  meet  again  till  they  shall  do  so  within 
the  city  where  partings  are  unknown. 


160         CHILDREN -OF  THE  GREAT  KING. 


CHAPTER  XVIIL 

"The  sea,  the  sea,  the  glorious  seal 

"What  has  the  earth  so  fair 
Of  hill  or  valley,  grove  or  lea, 

Which  may  with  it  compare  ? 
0, 1  could  sit  for  hours  to  look 

Upon  its  wide  expanse, 
And  read,  in  its  unwritten  book, 

Fresh  charms  at  every  glance." 

"  FRANCES,  Ada,  look  here !  have'nt  we  been 
successful  to-day  ?"  said  Claude  and  Arthur  in  a 
breath  as  they  ran  toward  a  sheltered  nook, 
where  the  girls  sat,  on  a  wooded  declivity  over- 
hanging the  beautiful  beach  at  Ilfracombe ;  "  only 
see !"  And  they  proceeded  to  take  out  of  the  ves- 
sels which  they  carried  some  beautiful  specimens 
of  marine  animals,  feathery  plemose,  the  bright 
rosy  anemones,  one  or  two  snowy  ones,  some  of 
the  graceful  cave-dwellers,  and  two  brilliantly- 
colored  crasses  looking  like  dahlias. 

The  girls  were  delighted  with  the  new  additions 
to  their  aquarium,  declaring,  however,  that  the 
boys  might  keep  the  crasses ;  for,  beautiful  as  they 
were,  they  preferred  the  smaller  ones;  and  the 


CHILDREN   OF  THE   GREAT  KING.          161 

large  kind,  at  all  events,  were  more  suited  to  the 
tank. 

"  What  lovely  sea-weeds  1"  said  Ada.  "Ah,  here 
is  a  kind  will  do  charmingly  to  form  a  group  for 
the  screen  I  am  making  for  Miss  Manley.  How 
graceful  they  look !" 

"  Ah,  but,"  interrupted  the  boys,  "  you  should 
have  seen  them  in  the  place  they  were  growing ; 
the  most  beautiful  little  pool  you  can  imagine,  far 
away  among  the  rocks  yonder.  This  rose-colored 
sea-weed  fringed  the  whole  of  it  with  its  feathery 
branches,  just  like  a  little  fairy  tree.  Some  of 
those  brilliant-colored  crasses  were  sunning  them- 
selves in  it,  spread  out  in  all  their  beauty ;  funny 
little  fish  were  darting  about  it :  in  fact,  it  was 
just  a  natural  aquarium;  and  the  water  so  clear 
too.  But  I  can  tell  you  the  very  shadow  of  our 
hands,  as  they  touched  the  water,  changed  the 
whole  appearance  of  it.  The  fish  disappeared  in 
a  moment,  the  crasses  drew  in  their  tentacles, 
and,  becoming  quite  ugly,  covered  themselves 
with  sand  and  mud  as  we  tried  to  catch 
them." 

The  girls  declared  they  must  see  the  pool  for 
themselves  the  next  day,  but  now  they  must  go 
indoors,  as  it  was  dinner-time;  and  starting  up, 


162          CHILDREN  OF  THE  GREAT  KING. 

the  four  set    off  toward  their  pleasant  lodgings 
close  by  the  shore. 

July  sunshine  and  warmth  had  brought  no  re- 
turning health  to  Arthur  "Willoughby ;  nay,  rather 
increased  his  languor ;  and  at  the  doctor's  advice 
his  parents  had  taken  him  and  the  rest  of  their 
family  to  try  the  effects  of  the  sea  air  at  the  quiet 
town  of  Ilfracombe.  They  had  been  there  for 
three  weeks,  and  certainly  Arthur  had  gained 
strength  since  they  came,  and  thoroughly  enjoyed, 
as  did  the  others  likewise,  the  rambles  among  the 
rocks  and  the  pure  sea-breeze.  Miss  Manley  had 
gone  home  for  a  short  time  to  visit  her  friends ; 
so  the  children  were  left  a  great  deal  to  themselves, 
and  spent  most  of  the  day  in  the  open  air. 

News  from  the  Crimea  was  still  anxiously 
looked  for.  The  battles  of  the  Alma  and  Inker- 
man,  and  the  bold  charge  at  Balaklava,  were  now 
as  household  words,  and  yet  the  allied  armies  were 
still  occupied  in  besieging  Sebastopol.  Long  and 
obstinately  the  enemy  held  out,  but  the  allies 
feared  not ;  they  were  confident  of  victory  sooner 
or  later.  Colonel  Percy  wrote  constantly  now,  to 
tell  of  some  brave  repulse  given  to  parties  of  the 
enemy,  who  endeavored  in  the  dead  of  night  to 
make  a  sortie,  hoping  to  surprise  the  allied  army ; 


CHILDREN   OF  THE   GREAT  KING.          163 

but  finding  them  fully  prepared,  were  obliged  to 
retreat'  again  within  the  walls,  though  often  not 
without  loss  of  life  on  both  sides.  Even  in  the 
midst  of  all  the  uproar  of  the  incessant  warfare, 
Colonel  Percy  told  how  a  chosen  few,  officers  and 
men,  used  to  meet  together,  now  in  one  tent,  now 
in  another,  to  pray  and  sing  praises  to  the  Great 
King.  Some  there  were  who  at  first  scoffed  at 
the  little  company ;  but  as  it  became  evident  that 
the  men  who  composed  it  were  remarkable  for 
bravery,  patience,  resolution,  kind-heartedness, 
and  holy  lives,  the  derision  ceased,  and  the  mock- 
ers acknowledged  that  if  religion  produced  such 
fruits  it  could  not  be  such  a  bad  thing  after  all. 

As  the  children  played  on  the  beach  they  often 
remarked  a  fine-looking  old  man,  who  was  almost 
ahvays  absorbed  in  reading  the  papers,  only  rais- 
ing his  head  for  a  moment,  as  the  merry  young 
voices  met  his  ear,  to  look  at  them,  and  sometimes 
kindly  to  wish  them  good-day.  ^ 

One  morning  Claude  determined  to  have  a  talk 
with  the  old  man,  and  find  out  who  he  was ;  for 
he  had  said  from  the  first  that  he  was  sure  he  was 
an  old  soldier,  while  the  others  had  stoutly  main- 
tained he  must  have  been  a  sailor,  he  was  evi- 
dently so  fond  of  the  sea.  Taking  for  granted 


164:          CHILDREN   OF  THE   GREAT  KING. 

that  his  guess  was  the  right  one,  Claude  began 
his  attack  thus :  "  That  was  a  famous  repulse  our 
troops  gave  the  Russians  last  month,  was  it  not  ? 
You  like  to  read  about  the  war,  don't  you,  sir?" 

The  old  man's  eye  glistened  as  he  replied, 
"  That  I  do,  my  young  sir ;  and  if  this  hand  were 
not  so  frail,  and  these  limbs  so  tottering,  it's  not 
Tom  Evans  would  be  sitting  here  when  his  coun- 
try is  needing  men  to  fight  in  its  cause.  Many 
and  many's  the  battle  I've  fought,  and  none  can 
say  they  saw  me  flinch  for  ball  or  sword.  There's 
many  a  one  cries  out  for  peace,  peace ;  but  it's  war 
for  me ;  flashing  swords,  and  the  roar  of  cannon ; 
these  are  the  sounds  that  please  '  Old  Tom,'  as  the 
children  call  me.  I'm  old  and  gray-headed,  and 
useless  now,  you  see,  but  I  was  young  and  strong 
when  I  fought  at  Waterloo  under  the  Iron  Duke. 
Yes,  that  was  a  battle.  They  may  speak  of  Alma 
and  Inkerman,  but  it's  Waterloo  was  the  battle  of 
battles,  let  who^rill  say  the  contrary.  But  the 
charge  at  Balaklava  was  a  grand  one,  I'll  say  that : 
'twas  a  rash  order  to  give,  may  be,  '  Take  yon 
guns  !'  but  the  way  'twas  obeyed  was  grand,  yes, 
grand,"  repeated  the  old  man,  his  eyes  flashing 
fire ;  "  and  'tis  no  part  of  a  soldier's  duty  to  dis- 
pute commands ;  he  has  nothing  to  do  but  obey. 


Claude   and   the   Old    Soldier. 


CHILDREN   OF  THE   GREAT  KING.          167 

Remember  that,  young  sir,  for  you  have  the  look 
of  a  boy  who  would  some  day  be  a  soldier ;  your 
great  duty  is  obedience  to  your  commander,  be  he 
right  or  wrong  in  his  orders." 

"  I  know  that,"  Claude  answered  boldly,  "  for  I 
am  a  soldier's  son,  and  have  been  taught  that  les- 
son from  a  child." 

The  old  man  drew  from  the  boy  an  account  of 
his  father's  services,  regiment,  and  name,  and 
waxed  eloquent  in  his  own  stories  of  the  Peninsular 
wars,  ending  by  asking  Claude  to  come  to  his  cot- 
tage, which  was  close  by,  and  see  some  curious 
coins  and  two  medals  which  he  had.  Claude 
could  not  go  that  day,  but  promised  he  would 
soon.  The  old  man  had  taken  his  fancy ;  but  he 
grieved  to  hear  that  he  scrupled  not,  in  talking,  to 
take  the  name  of  God  in  vain. 

As  they  parted  the  old  soldier  repeated  his 
boast,  "  None  can  say  Tom  Evans  ever  in  word  or 
deed  failed  to  obey  his  captain's  commands." 

"  And  yet,"  said  Claude,  half  timidly,  "  I  notice 
you  don't  think  much  of  disobeying  the  commands 
of  the  Great  Captain." 

"  The  Great  Captain !  who  is  he,  boy  ?  and  what 
do  you  mean  by  my  disobeying  his  commands  ?  " 

"I  mean  the  Lord  Jesus,"  Claude  answered; 


168         CHILDREN  OF  THE  GREAT  KING. 

"  the  Captain  of  our  salvation,  whom  every  one  of 
us  is  bound  to  obey,  before  whose  judgment-seat 
we  must  all  one  day  stand,  and  give  in  our  ac- 
count of  how  we  have  obeyed  his  orders ;  and  he 
has  said,  '  Swear  not  at  all.'  Don't  do  it,  Mr. 
Evans,  for  the  Lord  Jesus  is  a  good  Captain,  and 
all  who  fight  under  his  banners  are  blessed." 

Without  waiting  for  more  words  Claude  was 
off,  eager  to  tell  that  the  old  man  was  a  soldier, 
and  to  relate  some  of  the  stories  he  had  told  him. 

The  old  man  looked  after  him,  muttering  to 
himself  as  he  did  so,  "  That's  a  strange  boy ;  bold- 
like  too,  and  yet  can  preach  like  a  parson,  better 
than  some  I've  heard.  The  Great  Captain — that's 
what  he  called  Jesus — expects  us  all  to  obey  his 
commands.  Well,  Tom  Evans,  you'll  certainly  be 
cashiered  and  shamefully  expelled  for  disobedience 
to  that  Captain's  orders,  and  there  will  be  nothing 
but  justice  in  the  sentence  either;  not  a  word 
could  you  say  in  your  own  defense  before  that 
court ;  and  you're  old,  and  the  time  of  your  reck- 
oning can't  be  far  off.  Heigh  ho !  but  that  bit 
boy  made  me  feel  oddish.  There's  an  old  Bible  at 
home,  it  hasn't  been,  opened  for  many  a  day ;  but 
I'll  have  a  spell  at  it,  and  see  what  the  Captain 
says.  I  like  that  boy,  too,  I  do ;  he's  the  very 


CHILDREN   OF  THE   GREAT   KING.          169 

making  of  a  soldier  in  him.  And  so  he  did  not 
like  to  hear  the  old  man  swear.  Well,  soldiers 
did  not  mind  that  so  much  in  my  day ;  but  things 
change,  no  doubt."  And  the  old  man  walked 
slowly  home,  and  turned  into  his  solitary  house ; 
for  he  liked  to  live  alone,  although  a  married 
daughter  and  her  children  lived  only  a  short  way 
off,  and  had  pressed  him  to  make  her  home  his. 

A  well-read  copy  of  "Wellington's  Life"  lay 
open  on  the  table ;  but  that  night  it  was  the  long- 
neglected  large-printed  Bible  that  the  old  man 
pored  over,  and  the  verse  he  dwelt  the  longest  on 
was  the  third  in  the  second  chapter  of  Second 
Timothy :  "  Thou  therefore  endure  hardness,  as  a 
good  soldier  of  Jesus  Christ."  He  could  not  find 
out  yet  anything  about  the  Captain  of  salvation ; 
but  he  had  found  out  one  thing,  and  that  not  a 
small  one,  that  he  was  not  a  good  soldier  of  Jesus 
Christ.  The  way  of  salvation  was  all  dark  and 
unknown  to  him :  through  a  long  lifetime  he  had 
dwelt  in  that  darkness,  and  knew  not  that  it  was 
not  light ;  but  the  reflected  light  of  a  child  of  the 
Great  King  had  shown  him  the  darkness  which 
surrounded  him,  and  the  old  man  started  as  he 
saw  how  thick  it  was. 

Some  days  passed  ere  Claude  visited  the  old 
11 


170        .CHILDREN   OF  THE   GREAT   KING. 

soldier  in  his  humble  cottage.  The  welcome  he 
received  was  a  hearty  one,  and  it  was  plainly 
with  no  small  pleasure  that  the  old  man  showed 
off  his  stock  of  curiosities,  and  poured  into  the 
boy's  ears  one  story  after  another  of  his  youthful 
days  and  adventures.  Ere  Claude  rose  to  go,  the 
soldier  pointed  to  the  large  Bible  on  the  table, 
saying,  "Young  sir,  I've  been  taking  a  read  at 
that  book,  looking  to  find  out  what  orders  the 
Great  Captain  you  spoke  of  has  given  to  his  sol- 
diers, and  it's  plain  to  me,  when  the  hour  of  reck- 
oning or  the  day  of  inspection  comes  round,  that 
Tom  Evans  stands  a  poor  chance :  no  way  of 
escape  for  him  either  that  I  can  see."  Yet  the 
old  man  looked  anxiously  at  the  boy  as  he  spoke, 
as  if  hoping  he  might  contradict  his  assertion. 

"  O  yes,"  said  Claude  eagerly,  "  there  is  a  way 
of  escape  for  all  who  confess  their  sins  and  seek 
forgiveness.  Look  here,"  and  Claude  opened  the 
Bible,  "it  is  written,  'The  blood  of  Jesus  cleanseth 
us  from  all  sin ;'  and  again  in  the  first  chapter  of 
Ephesians  we  read,  '  God  hath  accepted  us  in  the 
Beloved,  [that's  Christ,]  in  whom  we  have  re- 
demption through  his  blood,  the  forgiveness  of 
sins.'  The  way  of  salvation  is  plain  enough, 
sir.  '  Believe  on  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  and 


CHILDREN   OF  THE   GREAT  KING.          171 

thou  shalt  be  saved.'  The  great  Captain  is  worthy 
of  our  love.  When  nothing  but  certain  destruc- 
tion awaited  everyone  of  us,  he  gave  his  life  to 
save  us;  so,  surely,  he  has  a  claim  on  our  love, 
obedience,  and  gratitude,  has  he  not  ?  " 

"  That  he  has,  sir,  and  no  mistake ;  but  it's  the 
enemy  I  fear,  that  Satan :  he'll  be  always  tempt- 
ing me  to  disobey  the  Captain,  and  not  fight 
under  his  banners ;  and,  you  see,  it's  with  shame 
I  say  it,  but  all  my  life  I  see  now  it's  under 
Satan's  banners  Tom  Evans  has  fought,  and  it 
will  be  hard  work  to  escape  out  of  his  hands." 

"  True  enough,  sir,"  said  Claude ;  "  but,  as  my 
father  told  me,  Christ  is  stronger  than  Satan ;  ask 
him  to  help  you,  and  fight  your  enemy  for  you, 
and  he'll  do^it:  never  fear,  only  trust  in  him.  It 
is  written,  '  Resist  the  devil,  and  he  will  flee  from 
you.'  You  must  read  about  the  Christian's  armor, 
in  which  all  the  soldiers  of  Christ  must  be  clothed. 
Here  is  the  place,  in  the  sixth  chapter  of  Ephe- 
sians.  See,  we  are  told  we  must  put  on  the  whole 
armor  of  God,  that '  we  may  be  able  to  stand 
against  the  wiles  of  the  devil." 

The  old  man  read  the  passage  carefully,  and 
mused  over  it  long  after  Claude  had  left  the 
cottage,  saying  to  himself  as  he  read,  "  "Well,  it's 


172          CHILDREN  OF  THE   GREAT   KING. 

plain  enough  that  the  battle's  a  hard  one,  and  the 
enemy  very  strong  and  very  crafty,  but  then  the 
Great  Captain  is  stronger  than  Satan  ;  and,  as  the 
boy  said,  they  that  are  with  us  are  greater  than 
all  that  are  against  us." 

The  old  man's  progress  in  the  knowledge  of 
divine  things  was  slow ;  but  through  the  darkness 
the  true  light  had  shone,  and  would  go  on  increas- 
ing to  the  eternal  day ;  and,  even  at  the  eleventh 
hour,  the  old  soldier  would  join  the  band  who, 
through  much  tribulation  and  many  difficulties, 
yet  with  a  secret  strength  and  joy  of  which  the 
world  knows  not,  are  pursuing  their  way  under 
the  guidance  of  the  Son  to  the  palace  of  the  Great 
King. 

The  month  of  September  found  the  Willough- 
bys  and  the  Percys  once  more  in  their  lovely 
home,  reveling  in  the  beauties  of  country  scenery 
at  this  season,  when  the  silent  processes  of  nature 
during  long  months  have  reached  their  consum- 
mation, and  have  covered  the  earth  with  fruit, 
while  the  trees  stand  as  yet  with  their  summer 
beauty  untouched,  awaiting  the  breath  of  autunm 
to  clothe  them  with  a  beauty  pleasing  to  look  on, 
though  betokening  decay. 

On  a  day   of  more  than   ordinary  loveliness, 


CHILDREN   OF  THE   GREAT  KING.          173 

when  the  earth  was  covered  with  the  bounty  of 
the  Lord,  the  glad  news  spread  from  county  to 
county  in  the  United  Kingdom  that  Sebastopol 
was  taken.  British  arms  had  once  more,  by  the 
blessing  of  God,  proved  successful ;  the  war  had 
ceased,  the  oppressed  were  free.  The  nation 
hailed  the  news  with  unbounded  joy.  Peals  of 
cannon  sounded  over  the  land,  telling  of  victory ; 
bells  rung  out  the  glad  tidings,  brilliant  fireworks 
proclaimed  the  universal  joy,  and  from  many  a 
church  rose  the  strain  of  grateful  praise  to  Him 
who  had  given  the  victory,  and  once  more  gave 
the  prospects  of  peace.  A  sense  of  repose  and 
rest  descended  that  night  on  many  a  heart  that 
for  long  weary  months  had  beat  in  restless  anx- 
iety for  loved  ones  amid  the  dangers  of  war. 

At  Willoughby  House  the  news  was  received 
with  a  joy  almost  too  deep  for  words;  even 
Claude's  warlike  spirit  rejoicing  at  the  thoughts 
of  a  peace  (gained  by  victory)  which  would  once 
more  restore  their  father  to  them.  But  it  was  in 
the  quiet  of  her  own  room  that  Ada  gave  vent  to 
her  feelings,  and  then  it  was  in  adoring  prayer  to 
the  Great  King,  who  had  preserved  their  father 
safe,  and  made  the  war  to  cease.  The  party  that 
evening  was  joined  by  Mr.  Hole,  who  came  to 


174         CHILDREN   OF  THE   GREAT   K1XG. 

congratulate  the  Percys  on  the  good  news,  and 
unite  with  them  in  returning'thanks  to  the  Great 
King  for  his  mercy,  each  one  saying  from  his 
heart,  even  as  David  did  of  old,  "  Blessed  be  the 
Lord  God  of  Israel,  our  Father,  for  ever  and 
ever."  "  Thine,  O  Lord,  is  the  greatness,  and  the 
power,  and  the  glory,  and  the  victory,  and  the 
majesty :  for  all  that  is  in  the  heaven  and  in  the 
earth  is  thine ;  thine  is  the  kingdom,  O  Lord,  and 
thou  art  exalted  as  head  over  all ;"  each  one  seek- 
ing that  the  time  might  soon  come  when  men 
should  "beat  their  swords  into  plowshares,  and 
their  spears  into  pruning-hooks,  and  nation  shall 
not  lift  up  sword  against  nation,  neither  shall  they 
learn  war  any  more." 


CHILDREN   OF  THE   GREAT   KING.          175 


CHAPTER  XIX. 

"  The  merry  homes  of  England ! 

Around  their  hearths  by  night, 
What  gladsome  looks  of  household  love 

Meet  in  the  ruddy  light  1 " 

SOFT  spring  breezes  were  blowing,  delicate 
green  leaves  covered  the  trees,  quivering  as  if  in 
the  exquisite  enjoyment  of  life,  and  the  bright 
sunbeams  played  on  the  rosy  blossoms  of  the 
lovely  Devonshire  orchards  ere  Colonel  Percy 
found  himself  in  Willoughby  House,  and  once 
more  clasped  his  children  in  his  arms,  the  weary 
months  of  toil  and  danger  and  separation  all  for- 
gotten in  the  joy  of  reunion. 

In  the  end  his  arrival  was  unexpected;  the 
party  were  assembled  in  the  drawing-roonij  music 
and  the  merry  laughter  of  children  filled  the 
room,  drowning  the  sound  of  carriage-wheels, 
when  the  door  opened,  and  Colonel  Percy  stood 
in  the  midst  of  them.  One  glance,  and  with  a 
shout  of  joy  his  children  were  in  his  arms. 

A  warm  welcome  from  all  greeted  him ;  and  as 


176          CHILDREN  OF  THE  GREAT  KING. 

he  sat  on  the  sofa,  his  anus  encircling  his  children, 
his  heart  was  filled  with  true  happiness.  Even 
while  answering  the  questions  addressed  to  him 
on  all  sides,  his  eyes  rested  with  delight  on  his 
boy  and  girl,  noting  the  change  and  improvement 
which  nearly  two  years  had  made  on  their  ap- 
pearance, and  observing,  with  an  eye  sharpened 
by  parental  affection,  the  expression  of  counte- 
nance which  told  him  of  mental  and  spiritual 
growth.  In  Ada's  he  read  a  character  strength- 
ened and  ennobled  by  her  love  to  God  and  man, 
and  rendered  more  self-reliant,  since  he  had  seen 
her,  by  the  circumstances  in  which  she  had  been 
placed.  And  in  Claude's^ he  read  the  same  bold, 
eager  spirit  as  of  old ;  but  the  firm  set  of  mouth, 
and  whole  expression  of  face,  betokened  a  temper 
more  held  in  subjection,  a  mind  more  concen- 
trated than  of  old. 

Ada  said  little,  and  only  those  who  knew  her 
well  would  have  known  how  happy  she  was;  but 
to  them  her  peaceful,  loving,  grateful  look  spoke 
volumes.  Not  hers  the  nature  which  finds  vent 
for  its  happiness  in  words ;  no,  although  happi- 
ness pervaded  even  the  very  depths  of  her  heart, 
its  outward  expression  spoke  more  by  the  eyes 
than  the  lips.  But  Claude's  joy  was  expressed 


CHILDREN  OF  THE  GREAT   KIXG.          177 

more  openly,  and,  but  for  deference  to  the  feel- 
ings of  others,  would  have  found  vent  in  a  true 
schoolboy's  hurrah.  * 

A  pause  in  the  conversation  let  him  put  the 
question,  "Please,  papa,  will  you  tell  us  some- 
thing about  the  taking  of  Sebastopol  on  the 
glorious  eighth  of  September  ? "  The  request 
was  granted,  and  a  short  account  of  the  assault 
given. 

"For  hours  the  struggle,  Claude,  was  a  hard 
one,  and  at  times  victory  seemed  doubtful ;  once 
masters  of  the  Malakoff,  we  knew  Sebastopol 
must  fall.  Many  a  brave  man  perished  ere  that 
was  achieved ;  but  when  it  was  so,  shouts  of 
triumph  told  we  felt  that  victory  was  now  ours. 

"  During  the  night  loud  explosions  and  blazing 
flames  told  that  the  enemy  had  abandoned  the 
town,  blowing  up  their  defenses,  their  powder 
magazines,  and  different  establishments,  and  set- 
ting fire  to  the  city.  Morning  confirmed  the 
truth  of  our  suppositions ;  the  Russians,  under 
the  leadership  of  Prince  Gortschakoff,  had  de- 
parted, having  destroyed  everything  they  could, 
and  punk  a  number  of  ships  in  the  harbor,  leaving 
the  allied  armies  conquerors.  You  can  scarcely 
imagine  the  desolate  appearance  which  the  once 


178          CHILDREN   OF  THE   GREAT  KING. 

fine  town  bore  when  our  troops  entered  it ;  scenes 
of  horror  on  every  side,  smouldering  ruins, 
crumbling  houses,  and  dead  bodies  of  men  and 
animals. 

"Yes,  Claude,  the  glitter  of  war  is  only  at  a 
distance:  those  who  have  witnessed  the  many 
horrors  attendant  on  even  a  short  campaign,  must 
acknowledge  it  to  be  a  necessary  evil ;  and  even 
the  most  heroic  and  boldest  of  soldiers  should 
look  forward  with  rejoicing  to  the  time  when 
nations  shall  not  learn  war  any  more." 

As  Colonel  Percy  spoke,  his  eye  rested  on 
Arthur,  who  sat  with  his  large  dreamy  eyes  fixed 
on  his  uncle,  apparently  absorbed  in  listening  to 
him ;  yet  with  the  appearance  of  one  whose 
thoughts  had  been  led  by  the  conversation  to 
things  beyond  and  above.  Something  in  the  look 
struck  Colonel  Percy,  and  he  saw  with  pain  the 
boy's  very  delicate  appearance.  Laying  his  hand 
kindly  on  his  shoulder,  he  drew  him  nearer  to 
him.  "Well,  Arthur,  what  are  you  thinking 
of?"  he  said,  somewhat  playfully.  "Did  you 
not  like  to  hear  my  description  of  all  those 
horrors  ?  " 

Half  bashfully  the  child  said,  "  No,  no,  it  was 
not  that;  I  liked  to  hear;  only  you  made  me 


CHILDREN   OF  THE   GREAT  KING.          179 

think  of  some  words,  and  they  led  my  thoughts 
to  other  things." 

"  What  were  the  words,  Arthur  ?  "  said  Claude ; 
"do  tell  us." 

Gently  he  whispered,  " '  They  shall  not  hurt  nor 
destroy  in  all  my  holy  mountain,  saith  the  Lord ;' 
and  I  was  just  thinking  how  pleasant  it  would  be 
to  be  there,  '  for  the  people  who  dwell  there  shall 
be  forgiven  their  iniquities.' " 

The  boy's  words  were  so  plainly  the  simple 
expression  of  his  real  feelings  that  Colonel  Percy 
felt  much  attracted  to  him;  he  saw  with  regret 
the  sad  look  which  crossed  his  father's  face  as  he 
regarded  his  child,  whose  whole  appearance  now 
indicated  only  too  plainly  that  ere  long  the  place 
which  now  knew  him  would  know  him  no  more 
for  ever. 

Not  till  the  children  were  alone  with  their 
father,  holding  sweet  converse,  as  of  old,  did  Ada 
realize  how  happy  she  was.  Together  they  spoke 
of  the  Great  King,  and,  kneeling  at  the  throne  of 
grace  with  grateful  hearts,  rendered  thanks  to 
him  for  having  preserved  them,  and  brought  them 
again  together  in  safety ;  and  as  Ada  lay  in  bed 
that  night,  she  thought  of  the  last  time  she  had 
received  her  father's  good-night  kiss,  and,  remem- 


180          CHILDREN   OF  THE   GREAT   KING. 

bering  her  dream,  acknowledged  that,  in  very- 
truth,  the  Son  of  the  King  had  upheld  her  weak 
steps,  had  overcome  the  many  obstacles  and 
thorns  which  had  at  first  encompassed  her  way, 
and  was,  she  doubted  not,  leading  her  onward  to 
the  palace  where  he  dwelt. 

Very  calmly  she  slept  that  night,  no  bloody 
battle-fields  before  her  eyes,  as  had  so  often  beon 
in  the  past  months ;  only  her  father's  figure,  and, 
clearer  far  than  of  late,  the  face  of  her  gentle 
mother,  peaceful  and  sweet  as  of  old ;  so  lifelike 
that  when  the  bright  sunshine  roused  her  from 
her  slumber,  ere  she  fully  awoke  to  consciousness, 
and  only  aware  that  some  very  joyful  event  had 
occurred,  it  was  some  minutes  ere  she  could  divest 
herself  of  the  idea  that  not  only  her  father,  but 
her  mother  also,  was  waiting  for  her  morning 
kiss.  But  the  truth  soon  shone  clearly ;  not  on 
earth  would  she  again  see  her  angel  mother,  or 
kneel  at  her  knee  in  prayer.  No,  that  meeting 
would  take  place  in  far  fairer  scenes,  even  in  the 
City  of  Light,  in  the  presence  of  the  Great  King ; 
till  then  in  dreams  only  would  she  behold  the  so 
loved  face. 

But  that  did  not  damp  the  joy  she  felt  in  once 
more  waking  to  the  delight  of  knowing  that  her 


CHILDREN  OF  THE   GEE  AT   KING.          181 

father  waited  impatiently  her  morning  salutation ; 
so  bed  was  left  with -a  bound.  And  her  Bible- 
reading  was  not  a  lonely  one  that  day,  for  just  as 
she  had  seated  herself  to  commence  it,  Colonel 
Percy  entered,  and,  seating  himself  beside  her, 
read  of  the  Lamb  who  stood  on  the  Mount  Sion, 
having  with  him  the  hundred  and  forty  and  four 
thousand  redeemed  ones  who  have  his  Father's 
name  written  in  their  foreheads. 

"Those,  Ada,"  he  said,  "were  all  children  of 
the  Great  King ;  no  mistaking  them  for  such  even 
on  earth,  for  the  seal  was  on  their  foreheads,  and 
'  holiness  to  the  Lord '  was  engraved  thereon  ; 
known  to  all  around  them  as  followers  of  the 
Lamb,  not  merely  by  bearing  his  name,  but  as 
being  a  peculiar  people,  zealous  of  good  works ; 
and  now,  when  we  read  of  them  in  glory,  they 
are  singing  a  song  of  praise  before  the  throne, 
which  they  only  can  sing  who  have  learned  it  on 
earth." 

"Papa,"  said  Ada,  looking  up  into  the  clear 
blue  sky,  "  mamma  is  there  singing  that  song,  is 
she  not  ?  " 

"Yes,  my  child,  in  full  assurance  of  faith  we 
can  say  she  is:  she  learned  that  song  on  earth, 
we  know ;  and  now  she  is,  without  fault,  before 


182         CHILDREN  OF  THE  GREAT  KING, 

the  throne  of  God,  washed  in  the  blood  of  the 
Lamb,  and  one  of  the  happy  ones  who  follow  "him 
whithersoever  he  goeth.  Ada,  even  if  we  could, 
would  we  bring  her  back  to  earth,  to  lean  on  our 
fraU  love  once  more  ?  " 

For  some  minutes,  gazing  upward  in  solemn 
thought,  then  with  a  smile  playing  on  her  lips,  as 
if  she  had  caught  a  glimpse  within  the  vail,  she 
said,  "  No,  papa,  she  is  better,  far  better  so.  One 
day  we  shall  see  her  again,  and  never  part.  Papa, 
I  hope  that  you  and  I,  Claude,  Arthur,  Frances, 
uncle,  aunt,  and  dear  little  Minnie,  all  will  be 
there." 

"  God  grant  it,  Ada ;  within  the  palace  of  the 
Great  King  may  we  all  meet,  no  member  lost,  a 
family  in  heaven." 


CHILDREN   OF  THE   GREAT   KING.          183 


CHAPTER  XX. 

He  led  them  forth  by  a  right  way,  that  they  might  go  to  a  city 
of  habitation. — PSA.  cvii,  7. 

YEEY  pleasant  were  the  summer  weeks  which 
Colonel  Percy  spent  with  his  children  at  Wil- 
loughby  House.  Time  seemed  to  fly  on  wings ; 
all  were  delighted  with  the  colonel's  pleasant, 
winning  manners^and  turned  to  him  for  advice  in 
perplexity,  or  sympathy  in  pleasure.  Now  he 
might  be  seen  superintending  farming  matters  in 
company  with  Mr.  Willoughby ;  then  ready  at 
Mrs.  Willoughby's  desire  to  make  some  calls  in 
the  neighborhood,  on  people  anxious  to  see  one 
who  had  gone  through  the  dangers  of  the  Crimean 
war.  Not  only  his  own  children,  but  Frances  and 
Arthur  also  sought  him  in  any  difficulty,  and  got 
him  to  be  a  partaker  in  their  pleasures. 

Kind  and  courteous  to  Miss  Manley,  grateful 
for  the  trouble  she  had  taken  with  his  girl,  he  yet 
little  suspected  how  interested  the  governess  felt 
in  him  as  the  friend  of  Herbert  Ainsworth ;  and 
with  what  breathless  delight  she  listened,  when  in 


184         CHILDREN   OF  THE   GREAT   KING. 

conversation  he  mentioned  his  name  as  one  of  the 
bravest  of  officers. 

But  not  for  much  longer  was  the  gentle  spirit 
of  Mary  Manley  to  Tbe  so  sorely  tried.  "When 
Colonel  Percy  had  been  about  a  month  at  Wil- 
loughby  House  the  post  brought  two  letters,  in 
Herbert  Ainsworth's  handwriting,  the  one  to 
Colonel  Percy,  the  other  to  Miss  Manley.  In  the 
one  he  told  his  friend  the  story  of  his  love,  making 
full  confession  of  the  part  which  he  had  acted,  and 
of  the  nobler  Christian  way  in  which  Miss  Manley 
had  behaved.  To  Miss  Manley  he  wrote  only  a 
few  lines,  telling  how  bitterly  he  had  repented  of 
the  step  he  had  taken,  and  how  deeply  and  fondly 
he  still  loved  her.  More  he  did  not  feel  himself 
privileged  to  write,  till  he  was  assured  of  her  for- 
giveness, and  had  obtained  her  consent  to^  see  her. 
"  Only  write  one  word  of  permission ;  only  say 
you  have  not  learned  to  forget  me  as  I  deserve," 
he  wrote,  "  and  a  few  hours  will  find  me  by  your 
side." 

Such  was  the  strain  of  the  letter  which  in  one 
moment  made  Mary  Manley 's  heart  beat  more  joy- 
fully than  it  had  done  for  many  a  day.  It  may  be 
that  a  stronger-minded  woman  would  have  re- 
jected the  lover  who  had  once  cast  her  off,  and, 


CHILDREN   OF  TEE   GREAT   KING.          185 

even  while  inwardly  suffering  herself,  would  hare 
rejoiced  in  her  revenge.  But  Mary  Manley  was 
strong-minded  only  in  some  things:  strong  in 
doing  right ;  strong  in  denying  herself  rather  than 
turn  aside  from  the  path  of  duty;  but  as  for 
quenching  her  deep  affections,  and  now  that  she 
had  the  power  of  glorying  in  being  able  to  say 
to  her  former  lover,  "  As  you  once  thought  you 
could  do  without  me,  I  will  not  forgive  you 
now" — as  for  writing  a  lie,  and  saying  she  had 
ceased  to  love — unheroic  as  she  may  seem,  she 
could  not  do  so,  not  she.  Like  a  very  woman  as 
she  was,  and  a  simple  loving  one  too,  she  laid 
down  her  head  and  cried  over  the  letter;  then 
took  up  her  pen,  and,  after  asking  counsel  only  of 
the  best  Counselor,  and  of  her  own  heart,  she 
wrote  the  words,  "  Come,  Herbert,  I  forgive  all," 
and  kneeling  in  prayer  thanked  the  Great  King  for 
granting  her  such  unlooked-for  bliss. 

"  Well,  I  declare,"  said  Frances,  (when  some 
days  afterward  her  uncle  was  relating  the  noble 
way  in  which  Miss  Manley  had  acted,)  "Miss 
Manley  is  quite  a  heroine  after  all;  only  you 
know,  uncle,  I  think  she  certainly  should  have 
refused  to  see  him  again,  instead  of  looking,  O  so 

bright  and  happy,  and  consenting,  mamma  says, 
12 


186          CHILDREN   OF   THE   GREAT   KING. 

to  be  married  to  him  soon  too.  She  should,  at 
least,  have  put  him  off  for  some  time  till  she  had 
proved  him;  that's  what  I  should  have  done." 
And  the  girl  drew  herself  up  in  the  conscious 
dignity  of  nearly  sixteen  years. 

Colonel  Percy  smiled  at  her  words  and  air  of 
determination.  "  "Wait  a  bit,  Frances,  till  you  are 
tried,  and  perhaps  your  fine  theories  will  all  be 
swept  away  by  the  flood  of  a  real  pure,  forgiving 
love,  which  erases  past  offenses  in  its  course,  and 
makes  them  seem  as  though  they  had  never  ex- 
isted." 

Ere  long  a  new  governess  filled  Miss  Manley's 
place,  and  the  autumn  months  saw  the  latter  the 
wife  of  Herbert  Ainsworth,  united  to  him  in  spirit 
as  she  had  never  formerly  been ;  for  now  they 
were,  in  Christ  Jesus,  members  of  the  little  flock 
whose  King  dwelleth  in  heaven,  and  who  appoint- 
eth  for  each  of  his  children  the  place  and  the  trials 
on  earth  which  will  prepare  them  best  for  the 
place  assigned  to  them  in  the  kingdom  above. 

Miss  Manley's  departure  was  a  real  grief  to  Ada 
and  Arthur,  though  her  successor,  Miss  "Williams, 
was  one  well  qualified  to  fill  her  place,  and  per- 
haps better  suited  for  the  charge  of  a  girl  of  the 
age  and  temperament  of  Frances. 


CHILDREN  OF  THE   GREAT   KING.          187 

All  too  soon  the  time  of  Colonel  Percy's  leave 
of  absence  sped  away,  and  Ada  learned,  somewhat 
to  her  surprise,  that  though  his  regiment  was  to 
be  stationed  probably  for  some  time  in  Ireland, 
she  was  still  to  remain  an  inmate  of  Willoughby 
House.  Indeed  no  other  plan  was  feasible,  unless 
that  of  placing  her  at  a  boarding-school  in  Dublin, 
which  was  once  thought  of,  where  her  father  could 
often  see  her.  But  much  as  he  would  have  liked 
the  plan,  he  soon  saw  that  the  best  one  would 
be  to  allow  Ada  to  remain,  for  some  time  at  least, 
under  the  charge  of  her  uncle  and  aunt. 

Fond  as  Ada  was  of  all  at  Willoughby,  she 
heard  her  father's  determination  with  a  sad  heart. 
Once  more  a  separation  was  before  her,  and  this 
time  not  only  from  her  father,  but  from  Claude 
also,  who,  after  the  Christmas  holidays,  was  to  go 
to  a  military  school  at  a  far  distance.  But  she 
showed  her  disappointment  as  little  as  possible, 
lest  she  should  grieve  the  kind  friends  who  she 
knew  had  arranged  all  for  what  they  believed  her 
good.  Claude  was  the  only  one  who  saw  how  cast 
down  she  was,  and  they  talked  over  the  subject 
together ;  and  he  pointed  out  to  her  some  bright 
spots  in  the  scheme,  which  cheered  her  not  a  little. 

"  Only  think,  Ada,"  said  he,  "  how  sorry  Arthur 


188         CHILDREN  OF  THE  GREAT  KING. 

would  be  if  you  went ;  see  how  he  likes  to  have 
you  sit  beside  him  and  talk  to  him,  and  what 
pleasure  he  takes  in  reading  all  the  queer  old 
stories,  just  to  have  the  pleasure  of  telling  them  to 
you.  And  Frances,  too — only  this  morning  she 
came  rushing  to  me  with  such  a  bright  face,  to  tell 
me  it  was  now  quite  fixed  that  you  would  remain ; 
'  and  Claude,'  she  said,  '  to  tell  you  the  truth,  I  am 
as  glad  as  glad  can  be ;  I  could  not  bear  now  to 
be  without  Ada.' " 

Well,  Ada  was  glad  to  hear  that;  though 
Frances  and  she  were  very  good  friends  now,  still 
she  did  not  fancy  she  cared  much  about  her.  O, 
she  knew  by  and  by  that  she  would  see  it  was  all 
right,  only  now  she  could  not  bear  to  think  of  it ; 
"alone,  without  even  you,  Claude,  near."  But 
her  brother  had  cheered  her,  and  she  must  not 
seem  to  rebel  against  her  father's  wishes ;  and  as 
she  re-entered  the  drawing-room,  with  a  face  not 
so  bright  as  usual,  it  is  true,  but  still  not  sad,  the 
kind  loving  looks  which  welcomed  her  told  that 
all  knew  and  sympathized  with  her  disappoint- 
ment, and  were  pleased  to  see  how  bravely  she 
bore  it.  Keenly  her  father  watched  her.  For  her 
good  he  had  acted,  but  the  pang  he  felt  was  as 
sharp  as  hers. 


CHILDREN   OF  THE   GREAT   KING.          189 

"Ada,"  he  said,  as  he  wished  her  good-night, 
"  the  Son  of  the  Great  King  has  promised  to  lead 
his  people  who  put  their  trust  in  him  safely  to  the 
palace ;  hut  he  has  said  that  he  must  choose  the 
way.  Sometimes  he  leads  them  away  from  the 
smooth  road,  which  they  would  like  to  tread,  and 
takes  them  by  a  rough  crooked  way,  but,  for  all 
that,  the  right  one  for  them." 

Ada  thought  of  her  dream,  saying,  "Well, 
papa,  I  am  glad  he  chooses  for  me  •  I  could  not 
have  chosen  this  one  for  myself." 


190         CHILDREN  OF  THE  GREAT  KING. 


CHAPTER  XXI. 

"  I  know  not  the  way  I  am  going, 

But  well  do  I  know  iny  Guide : 
With  a  childlike  trust  I  give  my  hand 

To  the  mighty  Friend  by  my  side. 
The  only  thing  I  say  to  him 

As  he  takes  it  is,  Hold  it  fast ; 
Suffer  me  not  to  lose  my  way, 

But  lead  me  safe  at  last." 

ADA'S  visits  to  the  blind  widow  were  still  regu- 
larly paid  ;  the  old  woman  waiting  impatiently  as 
the  usual  hour  for  her  visit  came  round,  her  quick 
ear  ever  the  first  to  catch  the  sound  of  the  light 
footstep  she  loved  so  well. 

For  some  weeks  Ada,  at  Mrs.  Barnes's  request, 
had  been  engaged  in  reading  aloud  to  her  the 
"Pilgrim's  Progress,"  the  old  woman  taking  in 
the  different  scenes  so  clearly,  just  as  if  she  saw 
them  all,  and  meditating  on  them  during  the  long 
hours  of  the,  to  her,  dark  day.  The  day  after  her 
future  plans  had  been  fixed,  Ada,  with  a  step  not 
so  light,  and  a  far  heavier  heart  than  of  old,  set 
off  to  the  village,  across  the  lovely  meadows,  and 
through  the  shady  flowery  lanes,  the  gentle 


CHILDREN   OF  THE   GREAT   KING.          191 

breezes  just  moving  the  leaves,  and  playing  softly 
on  her  forehead. 

She  was  to  read  that  day  of  Christian  and 
Faithful,  pilgrims  to  the  better  land,  arriving  at- 
a  beautiful  river,  on  the  banks  of  which  were 
green  trees,  bearing  all  manner  of  beautiful  fruit ; 
and  beyond  the  river,  on  either  side,  was  a  lovely 
meadow,  beautiful  with  lilies,  and  ever  green. 
For  some  time  the  pilgrims  loved  to  rest  there, 
drinking  of  the  pure  water  and  eating  the  pleas- 
ant fruits;  and  Ada,  as  she  looked  back  on  the 
three  months  which  her  father  had  spent  with 
them,  felt  as  if  she,  during  that  time,  had  been 
resting  by  just  such  another  river  of  pleasure,  and 
now,  like  the  pilgrims,  was  but  little  disposed  to 
turn  away  from  it,  and  press  on  again,  through 
perhaps  many  dangers,  to  her  home. 

She  read  to  the  old  woman  how  the  pilgrims,  as 
they  went  on,  saw  the  pleasant  path  by  the  river- 
side come  to  an  end,  and  a  rough  rugged  one  take 
its  place,  and  how  they  were  afraid  of  it,  and 
shrank  back ;  but  seeing  a  pleasant  path  leading 
away  through  a  green  meadow,  how  they  chose 
it,  and  walked  therein,  though  they  had  been  told 
to  follow  the  road  which  lay  straight  before  them, 
and  turn  not  aside ;  how  the  path,  which  looked 


192          CHILDREN  OF  THE   GREAT   KING. 

so  fair  to  the  eye,  led  them  straight  into  the 
dominion  of  Giant  Despair,  who  seized  them,  and 
carried  them  off  into  Doubting  Castle,  and  there 
•beat  and  cruelly  treated  them,  till  they  were 
almost  dead,  and  were  delivered  at  last  only  by 
the  magical  power  of  prayer  and  faith. 

As  Ada  read  these  things  her  voice  trembled  ; 
and  Mrs.  Barnes,  having  heard  that  Colonel  Percy 
was  to  go  away,  divined  the  cause.  She  laid  her 
hand  on  the  girl's  head.  "  Take  heart,"  she  said, 
"  never  you  fear.  The  Great  King  is  telling  you 
to  leave  the  pleasant  river-side  a  bit,  and  choose 
the  rugged  path;  but  he'll  hold  you  up  in  the 
way,  and  brighten  it  up  for  you.  See,  it  was 
because  the  pilgrims  turned  away  from  the  path 
before  them,  that  they  got  into  such  trouble. 
Don't  you  do  that,  dear  young  miss,  but  just  keep 
right  on  till  you  reach  the  palace." 

Yes,  Ada  saw  that  was  the  best,  the  only  way 
for  a  child  of  the  Great  King.  Anything,  any 
sorrow,  was  surely  better  than  going  astray,  and 
falling  into  the  hands  of  Giant  Despair.  So,  with 
a  lightened  heart,  Ada  went  home,  her  own  soul 
watered  while  she  had  been  watering  others ;  and 
meeting  her  papa  with  Frances  and  Claude,  set 
off  for  a  country  ramble,  and  returned  laden  with 


CHILDREN   OF  THE  GREAT   KING.          193 

wild  flowers  and  fruit,  little  Minnie  bounding  to 
meet  them  in  order  to  run  off  with  some  of  the 
flowers  for  Arthur,  who  lay  on  a  couch,  weak  and 
weary,  only  the  eye  very  bright,  and  the  spirit 
very  loving. 

Willie  Barnes  was  at  school  now;  but  once  a 
week  he  came  up  to  the  house  to  read  his  lesson 
to  Arthur,  whose  failing  strength  hindered  him 
from  getting  often  to  the  village,  save  now  and 
then  to  the  house  of  God.  But  the  sweet,  childish 
voice,  whose  notes  once  sounded  so  sweetly  there, 
was  scarcely  heard  now;  and  Mr.  Willoughby, 
and  even  his  fond  mother,  were  beginning  to 
realize  how  frail  was  the  thread  which  held  their 
darling  only  boy  to  earth. 

One  bright  autumn  day  Arthur  lay  on  his  couch 
close  by  the  window,  looking,  as  he  loved  to  do, 
at  the  beautiful  tints  of  green  and  gold,  and 
watching  the  light  clouds  which  flitted  across  the 
sky,  obscuring  every  now  and  then  the  rays  of 
the  sun,  and  casting  momentary  shadows  on  the 
earth.  Colonel  Percy,  who  sat  talking  to  him, 
observed  with  deep  compassion  the  troubled  look 
in  Frances's  face  as  she  sat  busied  with  her  work, 
her  back  half  turned  to  Arthur,  that  he  might  not 
see  her  face ;  for  in  very  truth  her  young  heart 


194          CHILDREN  OF  THE   GREAT   KING. 

was  sorely  troubled.  Only  that  morning  her 
father  had  told  her  the  doctor's  opinion,  that 
Arthur's  strength  was  fast  failing:  all  remedies 
had  failed;  all  that  could  now  be  done  was  pa- 
tiently to  watch  and  smooth  his  way  home. 

Impetuously  Frances  ran  away  from  her  father, 
refusing  to  believe  what  he  said.  She  said  she 
knew  that  doctors  were  almost  always  wrong, 
liked  to  make  the  worst  of  all  things;  and  she 
knew  Arthur  was  not  very  ill,  only  he  had  a  bad 
cough,  and  that  made  him  so  breathless  when  he 
tried  to  walk.  O  he  just  needed  somebody  to 
cheer  him ;  she  would  go  and  take  her  work 
beside  him,  and  rouse  him  up  a  bit.  And  this 
was  the  way  she  did  it :  she  came  humming  into 
the  room,  meaning  to  begin  a  joke  with  him, 
when  something  in  his  face,  a  look  of  calm  peace, 
as  of  one  whose  thoughts  were  far  above  earthly 
things,  struck  her  with  dismay,  and  told  her  that 
the  doctor  was  right.  She  tried  to  speak,  but  a 
ball  seemed  to  rise  in  her  throat  as  if  it  would 
choke  her ;  so  she  moved  her  seat,  turning,  as  we 
have  seen,  her  back  to  her  brother,  and  worked  on, 
her  breast  heaving  with  suppressed  emotion. 

She  was  relieved  when  her  uncle  came  into  the 
room,  and  Arthur  began  to  talk  to  him.  "Tell 


CHILDREN  OF  THE  GREAT  KIXG.          195 

me  again,"  he  said,  "  about  the  young  boy  officer 
you  wrote  of,  who  fell  at  Alma,  who  was  a  child 
of  the  Great  King.  His  journey  was  not  a  long 
one,  but  mine  will  be  far  shorter ;  different  ways, 
but  the  same  ending,  and  the  same  Guide,  the 
Son  of  the  Great  King.  Uncle,  you  know  Ada's 
dream;  I  always  felt  my  journey  would  be  short, 
and  now  I  can  see  the  palace  gate,  with  the  bright 
light  quite  close,  and  I  am  so  glad." 

His  words  were  cut  short  by  a  loud  sob  from 
Frances,  as  she  dashed  her  work  on  the  floor,  and 
rushing  out  of  the  room,  threw  herself  on  her  bed, 
and  sobbed  as  if  her  heart  would  break. 

Colonel  Percy  rose  at  once,  and  sending  Ada  to 
sit  with  Arthur,  followed  Frances  to  her  room, 
anxious  to  comfort  her.  Waiting  till  the  violence 
of  her  grief  was  over,  he  said  kindly,  "Dear 
Frances,  is  the  knowledge  of  Arthur's  danger  so 
new  to  you  ?  Did  no  one  warn  you  ?  " 

She  broke  in  on  his  speech,  but  not  with  the 
impetuous  voice  as  of  old.  "  Yes,  O  yes,  papa  did, 
and  mamma  also;  but  I  would  not  believe  it, 
would  not  believe  that  the  Great  King  he  loves 
so  well  could  be  so  cruel,  so  unjust,  as  to  take  him 
away  from  every  one  he  loves.  O,  I  could  not 
believe  it." 


196          CHILDREN   OF  THE   GREAT   KING. 

Colonel  Percy  repeated  her  words :  "  Cruel  and 
unjust !  Nay,  Frances,  say  not,  think  not  so.  In- 
very  love  and  mercy  does  the  Great  King  deal 
with  all  his  children,  and  very  lovingly  has  he 
dealt  with  dear  Arthur.  His  short  life  has  been 
full  of  happiness,  his  mind  so  formed  as  to  have 
tasted  the  purest  enjoyment  from  all  the  beauties 
of  nature,  in  the  midst  of  which  he  has  lived ;  and 
latterly  the  greatest  of  all  joys  has  been  granted 
to  him,  for  the  love  of  Jesus  has  filled  his  heart. 
And  now,  when  God  sees  fit  to  withdraw  him 
from  this  world,  he  has  removed  all  fear  of  death 
far  from  him ;  not  one  fear,  not  one  gloomy  thought 
concerning  it  has  crossed  his  mind.  He  thinks  of 
it  (as  indeed  it  is  to  all  who  love  Jesus)  as  only  a 
going  home;  and  dearly  as  he  loves  you  all,  he 
loves  Jesus  more,  and  is  longing  to  depart  and  be 
with  him.  O,  Frances,  when  God  has  thus  so 
tenderly  drawn  him  to  himself  by  the  bands  of 
love,  can  you  say  that  he  is  cruel  any  longer? 
Can  you  not  rather  return  him  thanks  from  your 
inmost  heart  for  his  loving-kindness  toward  him, 
and  pray  that  to  the  end  he  may  continue  it, 
making  Arthur's  heart  long  more,  day  after  day, 
for  the  hour  when  he  shall  behold  him  face  to 
face?" 


CHILDREN   OF  THE   GREAT   KING.          197 

The  girl's  sobbing  ceased  as  she  listened  to  her 
uncle's  words.  In  her  heart  she  confessed  their 
truth,  and  for  the  first  time  a  real  longing  desire 
filled  her  heart,  that  she  too  could  say  that  she 
was  indeed  a  child  of  that  merciful,  loving  King. 
On  the  last  day  Arthur  would  stand  on  the  right 
hand,  but  she  feared  that  her  place  would  be  on 
the  left.  Mr.  Hole's  words  sounded  again  in  her 
ears ;  she  must  seek  forgiveness  through  the  blood 
of  Jesus  now  if  she  would  not  hear  him  then  say, 
"  Depart  from  me."  The  dew  of  the  Spirit  had 
roused  to  life  the  seed  which  had  lain  so  long  dor- 
mant, and  the  cry  of  the  girl's  heart  was,  "  Bless 
me  also,  even  me,  O  Lord;"  and  ere  Colonel 
Percy  left  to  join  his  regiment,  as  he  shook  hands 
with  Mr.  Willoughby,  he  was  able  to  say,  "  I  hope, 
and  expect  to  hear  from  you  soon,  that  Frances 
too  has  joined  the  band,  and  wears  the  badge  of 
the  children  of  the  Great  King.  But  even  though 
the  blessing  tarry,  wait  for  it;  it  will  surely 
come.  She  is  a  child  of  prayer,  and  we  know 
that  ours  is  the  s"ure  promise,  '  Ask,  and  ye  shall 
receive.' " 

Yes,  so  it  was;  God,  in  his  own  way,  was 
guiding  the  spirit  of  the  girl  to  the  cross  of  Jesus, 
where  she  would  find  both  pardon  and  strength ; 


198          CHILDREN  OF  THE   GREAT  KING. 

but  the  guide  lie  had  commissioned  to  lead  her 
was  a  little  child,  whom,  after  that  work  was  done, 
and  that  labor  of  love  fulfilled,  he  was  to  take  to 
himself,  to  receive  the  crown  of  glory  prepared 
for  him  in  heaven. 


CHILDREN  O^1  THE   GREAT   KING.          199 


CHAPTER  XXIL 

"  My  Father's  house  on  high. 

Home  of  my  soul,  how  near, 
At  times,  to  faith's  far-seeing  eye, 

Thy  golden  gates  appear  1 
Ah !  then  my  spirit  faints, 

To  reach  the  land  I  love  ; 
The  bright  inheritance  of  saints, 

Jerusalem  above." 

A  FLEE  burned  brightly  in  the  neat  little  drawing- 
room  of  the  parsonage  at  Ashton ;  a  lamp  on  the 
center-table  shed  a  pleasant,  subdued  light  around, 
shining  on  the  pure  white  china  tea-cups,  bright 
new  silver  tea-pot,  and  a  pretty  bronze  tea-kettle, 
as  they  stood  ranged  before  a  gentle-looking  young 
lady,  who  busied  herself  in  preparing  tea,  while 
casting  every  now  and  then  anxious  looks  toward 
the  door,  as  if  expecting  some  one  to  enter. 

Presently  she  started  up  with  a  smile  of  wel- 
come as  the  door  opened,  and  her  husband,  the 
young  clergyman,  Mr.  Hole,  entered.  He  looked 
fagged  and  worn  out ;  but  the  hearty  welcome  he 
received,  the  warm  fire,  and,  let  us  add,  the  good 
cup  of  tea  he  drank,  cheered  him  up,  and  ere  long 
made  him  look  like  himself  again. 


200         CHILDREN  OF  THE  GREAT  K.IJSTG. 

Not  for  long  had  the  parsonage  been  inhabited 
by  the  pretty  little  blithe  woman  he  now  called 
wife.  Only  one  short  month  before,  when  No- 
vember winds  were  blowing,  and  dead  leaves 
whirled  through  the  air,  bringing  a  feeling  of 
desolation  into  many  hearts,  the  .bells  of  the  little 
village  church  rang  out  a  merry  peal,  and  the  band 
of  school-children  in  their  Sunday  best,  and  a  few 
of  the  still  lingering  flowers  of  autumn  in  their 
hands,  stood  ready,  in  their  own  rustic  fashion,  to 
welcome  the  clergyman  and  his  young  bride  to 
their  home ;  and  from  that  day,  in  the  eyes  of  the 
happy  husband,  there  seemed  to  be  perpetual  sun- 
shine in  the  parsonage.  November  winds  or 
December  snow  all  vanished,  or  at  least  were 
forgotten,  in  the  presence  of  his  bright  young 
bride. 

But  on  the  evening  we  write  of  he  looked  more 
worn  out  than  his  wife  had  yet  seen  him.  He  had 
gone  out  after  an  early  dinner,  and  had  only  just 
returned  when  it  was  almost  eight  o'clock.  He 
had  ridden  some  way  to  baptize  a  child,  and  see 
some  old  people,  who,  owing  to  the  great  distance, 
rarely  could  get  to  church ;  and  then,  as  he  had 
promised  Mr.  Willoughby,  he  had  called  at  the 
house  and  remained  some  time. 


CHILDREN  OF  THE   GREAT   KING.          201 

"  And  how  was  Arthur  to-night  ?"  said  his  wife ; 
"  not  worse,  I  hope." 

"  No,  I  think  not ;  no  marked  change,  the  doc- 
tors say,  only  a  gradual  loss  of  strength.  But 
many  an  advanced  Christian  might  learn  a  lesson 
from  that  child;  his  heart  glows  with  love  to 
Jesus,  and  love  to  all  around  him;  his  faith  so 
simple,  yet  so  strong ;  his  patient  unselfishness  so 
remarkable.  No  wonder  that  the  thought  of 
losing  him  is  a  sore  trial  to  parents  and  all  of 
them.  But  the  child  truly  has  not  lived  in  vain ; 
he  has  done  a  great  work  in  his  home.  The 
mother,  kind  and  hospitable  as  she  has  always 
been,  is  only  now,  it  seems  to  me,  fully  awaking 
to  the  saving  knowledge  of  the  truth,  learning  to 
know  Jesus  as  a  loving  personal  friend,  and  be- 
coming willing  to  let  the  child  she  loves  so  well 
depart  and  be  with  him. 

"And  Frances,  too,  is  changed — wonderfully 
changed.  She  has  by  nature  a  bold  temper,  and, 
young  as  she  was,  a  year  ago  was  learning  to 
scoff  at  holy  things ;  but  now  she  is  much  soft- 
ened. Her  greatest  pleasure  consists  in  sitting 
beside  her  brother,  listening  to  him  or  reading  to 
him.  As  I  went  into  the  room  quietly  with  Mr. 

Willoughby,  we  heard  Arthur  say  to  his  sister 
13 


202          CHILDREN    OF  THE   GREAT  KING. 

(while  a  large  screen  hid  us  from  sight,)  'Dear 
Frances,  Jesus  wishes  you  so  much  to  come  to 
him.  O,  taste  and  see  that  the  Lord  is  good; 
"blessed  are  they  who  put  their  trust  in  him.'  And 
the  girl  answered,  'Yes,  Arthur,  I  have  tasted 
and  found  it,  only  it  is  more  fear  than  love  with 
me  yet ;  but  I  believe  the  love  will  come  one  day.' 
The  conversation  ceased  as  we  walked  forward, 
and  Arthur  greeted  me  with  his  usual  happy  smile. 
"  As  I  walked  home  I  have  been  meditating  on 
the  wonderful  way  in  which  God  deals  with  his 
children;  and  how  apparently  simple,  and  often 
lowly,  are  the  means  he  makes  use  of  to  work  out 
the  counsels  of  his  will.  Step  by  step  I  have 
marked  the  change  in  that  household,  from  the 
mere  outward  form  of  religion  to  the  living  spirit. 
First  it  was  the  sweet  little  Ada  Percy  whom  he 
commissioned  to  speak  to  son  and  father  of  the 
way  of  salvation.  Then  it  is  the  dying  child  he 
has  permitted  to  be  the  instrument  of  drawing 
the  hearts  of  mother  and  sister  to  the  cross. 
Truly  God  hath  chosen  the  foolish  things  of  the 
world  to  confound  the  wise,  and  the  weak  things 
of  the  world  to  confound  the  things  which  are 
mighty,  that,  as  it  is  written,  'he  that  glorieth, 
let  him  glory  in  the  Lord.' " 


CHILDREN -OF  THE   GEEAT  KING.          203 

Yes,  all  that  Mr.  Hole  told  his  wife  that  night 
was  true ;  Arthur  Willoughby's  illness  was  prov- 
ing a  blessing  indeed  to  all  around  him.  Life 
went  on  much  as  usual  in  his  home :  the  girls 
were  a  great  deal  in  the  schoolroom  busied  with 
lessons ;  the  daily  walks  were  taken  as  usual ;  but 
somehow  Arthur's  spirit  pervaded  all.  The  les- 
sons were  done  more  heartily,  that  they  might 
get  down  sooner  to  sit  with  him ;  the  walks  were 
brightened  by  the  search  after  some  particular 
fossil,  or  stone,  or  plant,  for  Arthur. 

In  many  ways  Ada's  Christian,  kindly  spirit 
showed  itself.  Dearly  as  she  loved  Arthur,  she 
was  always  ready  to  yield  up  her  place  to  Fran- 
ces, knowing  how  she  ,  liked  to  spend  her  spare 
minutes  with  him ;  a\.d  one  day,  having  found  a 
pebble  which  she  knew  would  please  Arthur,  she 
gave  it  to  Frances  to  give  to  him,  knowing  she 
liked  to  do  so.  Frances  noticed  it  all,  and  sought, 
by  increased  gentleness  toward  her  cousin,  to 
show  she  appreciated  her  kindness. 

The  fruit  of  the  Spirit,  the  distinguishing  badge 
of  the  King's  children,  is  love.  Tell  us  not  of  a 
faith  which  is  without  it,  which  worketh  not  by 
it.  The  faith  which  lays  hold  of  Jesus  as  its 
object  shows  its  reality  by  the  fruits  of  holiness. 


204          CHILDREN  OF  THE   GREAT  KING. 

Very  truly  has  St.  James  declared  that  faith 
without  works  is  dead.  Nay,  such  a  thing  is 
not  faith  at  all,  hut  a  mere  delusion  of  Satan. 
The  children  of  the  Great  King,  knowing  what 
Jesus  has  done  in  order  to  secure  their  salvation, 
must,  out  of  love  and  gratitude  to  him,  and  be- 
cause he  has  saved  them,  glorify  his  name  by 
their  works. 

Arthur's  love  to  Claude  continued  unabated, 
and  the  Saturday  afternoons  were  anxiously 
looked  forward  to.  It  was  a  strange  sight  to  see 
these  two  together:  the  one  so  full  of  life  and 
spirit,  eager  to  run  the  race  before  him,  yet  look- 
ing up  to  heaven  for  guidance ;  the  other,  though 
several  years  his  junior,  tnving  almost  already 
reached  the  end  of  his  shorffipilgrimage,  dwelling 
on  the  very  confines  of  the  land  of  Beulah,  get- 
ting each  day  nearer  glimpses  of  the  celestial 
city,  learning,  from  the  bright  messengers  that 
come  from  thence  to  visit  him,  the  very  language 
of  the  sanctuary,  only  waiting  for  the  summons 
to  be  given,  "Come  up  hither."  These  visits 
were  good  for  Claude,  good  for  the  strengthening 
of  his  faith,  ere  he  went  forth  to  take  his  part  in 
the  world  of  a  large  public  school. 

One  day  the  boys  talked  of  Claude's  departure, 


CHILDREN   OF  THE   GREAT  KING.          205 

which  was  very  near,  and  of  the  trials  he  would 
be  exposed  to.  "Perhaps,"  said  Arthur,  "you 
will  find  it  hard  work  to  confess  the  Son  of  the 
King  there;  but,  Claude,  you  wont  draw  back; 
you  wont,  I  know.  You  wont  be  ashamed  of 
him ;  from  yonder  sky  I'll  watch  you,  one  of  the 
cloud  of  witnesses,  and  I  know  I'll  not  see  you 
draw  back,  for  God  will  strengthen  you."  Pres- 
ently he  said,  "  Please,  Claude,  read  to  me ;  read 
about  Paul  proclaiming  his  faith  in  God,  and 
giving  thanks  to  him  as  he  took  bread  before  all 
the  crew  of  the  heathen  ship.  It  must  have 
been  difficult,  perhaps  dangerous,  for  him  to  do 
it  there,  but  he  did  it.  Claude,  shall  I  give  you 
a  motto  ?  " 

"  Yes,  O  yes,  Arthur,  do,"  said  Claude. 

"Well,  here  it  is.  Wear  it  like  a  ring  round 
your  finger.  'God,  whose  I  am,  and  whom  I 
serve.' " 

Claude  repeated  the  words,  and  inwardly 
prayed  that,  come  what  might,  and  be  in  what 
company  he  might,  he  would  never  be  ashamed 
to  confess  that  motto,  and  act  as  a  servant  of  his 
Master  in  heaven.  Often,  often,  in  after  years, 
when  tempted  on  all  sides  to  forget  and  deny  his 
Lord,  did  that  motto  rise  to  his  remembrance, 


206          CHILDREN   OF  THE   GREAT  KING. 

and  with  it  the  soul-speaking  eyes  of  his  dying 
cousin,  as  he  said,  "  You  wont,  I  know  you  wont 
be  ashamed  of  Jesus ;"  and  once  and  again 
strength  from  above  was  granted  him  to  confess 
boldly  his  allegiance  to  the  Great  King.  So, 
being  dead,  Arthur  yet  spake. 

The  whole  party  were  assembled  round  Arthur's 
couch  one  clear  frosty  December  night,  when  Mr. 
Willoughby  put  into  Claude's  hand  a  letter  ad- 
dressed to  him  in  a  strange,  unformed  handwrit- 
ing, which  had  come  in  the  forenoon,  but  which 
he  had  forgotten  to  deliver.  Claude  wondered 
greatly  at  the  quaint  appearance  of  the  latter, 
and  knew  of  no  one  who  wrote  like  that.  At 
last,  after  a  good  deal  of  wonderment,  he  opened 
it,  and  read: 

"HONORED  SIK, — My  father,  Tom  Evans,  died 
here  last  night,  and  this  is  how  he  bade  me  write 
to  you.  'Tell  the  young  gentleman,'  he  said, 
*  the  colonel's  son,  that  the  old  soldier  has  fought 
his  last  battle ;  and,  no  thanks  to  himself,  nor 
because  he  deserved  it  in  anywise,  he  is  going  to 
a  home  above,  purchased  for  him,  and  prepared 
already  by  the  Captain  of  his  salvation.  Glory 
be  to  his  great  name !  And,'  said  he,  '  tell  the 


CHILDREN   OF  THE   GREAT   KING.          207 

young  master  he  has  no  fear  about  the  great  day 
of  inspection  now,  for  the  Captain  has  promised 
to  answer  for  him,  and  forgive  him  all  the  sin  of 
having  once  fought  under  the  banner,  of  the 
enemy;  and  as  the  Captain  is  himself  to  be 
Judge,  Tom  Evans  fears  no  longer.  Thank,'  he 
said,  '  the  gentleman  for  having  told  me,  even  at 
the  eleventh  hour,  of  the  great  Captain  of  salva- 
tion; and  bid  him  hold  fast  unto  the  end,  fight 
the  good  fight  of  faith,  laying  hold  of  eternal  life ; 
and,  through  the  gre.at  Captain,  he'll  be  sure  to 
come  in  conqueror  at  the  end.  The  blessing  of 
an  old  man  be  on  his  head.' 

"  That,  honored  sir,  is  what  he  bade  me  say ; 
then  he  began  to  repeat,  half  aloud,  words  that  a 
soldier  friend  had  said  to  him  the  day  before  : 

'  Then  I'll  march,  up  the  heavenly  street, 
And  pile  my  arms  at  Jesus'  feet.' 

And  just  after  that  he  looked  right  up,  saying, 
'That's  the  tattQO,  I  must  away;'  and  the  spirit 
fled." 

As  Claude  ceased  reading  every  eye  was  moist 
with  tears.  Mr.  Willoughby  pressed  Claude's 
hand,  saying,  "Thank  God,  my  boy,  for  having 
made  you  the  instrument  of  leading  the  old  man 


208         CHILDREN  OF  THE  GREAT  KING. 

to  his  Saviour."  Claude  said  nothing  just  then ; 
but,  for  all  that,  his  heart  was  full  of  gratitude 
for  having  been  so  honored. 

"  Poor  old  man,  so  he  is  dead,"  said  some  of  the 
hildren ;  "  how  sorry  his  daughter  will  be  ! " 

"She  should  not  sorrow  too  much,  I  think," 
said  Arthur ;  "  for,  you  know,  her  old  father  must 
be  so  happy  in  the  palace  of  the  King,  and  will 
wait  for  her  to  meet  him  there.  O  she  must  not 
grieve  for  him." 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  Willoughby  exchanged  looks ; 
well  they  knew  that  their  boy  thought  of  them, 
and  hoped  they  would  not  grieve  too  much  when 
the  King  took  him  away. 


CHILDREN  OF  THE   GREAT  KING.          209 


CHAPTER 

"  The  struggle  was  o'er,  the  valley  past 

Which  to  him  had  naught  of  gloom ; 
For  a  ray  from  heaven's  bright  portals  heamed 

To  lighten  his  path  to  the  tomb. 
He  heard  the  sound  of  the  angels'  harps, 

As  he  passed  up  the  golden  street ; 
But  Ttis  place  was  before  the  Saviour's  throne 

For  there  his  redeemed  ones  meet." 

THE  faint  light  of  a  March  morning  was  begin- 
ning to  struggle  in  the  eastern  sky,  scarcely  hav- 
ing chased  away  the  shades  of  the  long  night 
sufficiently  to  lighten  up  the  earth,  which  still 
remained  lightly  wrapped  in  the  gray  weird-like 
clothing  of  night,  when  little  Willie  Barnes  quietly 
opened  the  door  of  his  grandmother's  cottage,  and, 
shutting  it  after  him,  ran  out  through  the  little 
garden  to  the  road  in  front. 

He  looked  around  him  not  guiltily,  (for,  early 
as  it  was,  Willie's  father  knew  of  his  errand,  and 
had  given  him  permission,)  but  Willie  was  amused 
at  the  scene  around  him,  everything  was  so  still. 
The  inmates  of  the  houses  were  mostly  up,  it  is 
true,  and  stirring  indoors ;  but  only  here  and  there 


210         CHILDREN  OF  THE  GREAT  KING. 

a  figure  was  to  be  seen  setting  off  to  the  morning 
work.  The  smoke  from  some  of  the  cottages  was 
just  beginning  lazily  to  ascend;  and,  finding  it 
impossible  as  yet  to  rise  up  through  the  thick 
mist,  it  contented  itself  by  curling  into  every 
curious  form,  and  hanging  low  over  the  houses. 
But  Willie  passed  on,  down  by  the  parsonage, 
past  the  little  white  gate  which  led  to  it,  wonder- 
ing where  Mr.  Hole  was  going  to  so  early,  as  he 
saw  him  cross  a  field  right  in  front  of  the  parson- 
age, and  take  the  road  to  Willoughby  House. 

But  Willie's  road  lay  in  the  opposite  direction ; 
so  he  ran  on,  till,  after  crossing  a  meadow,  the 
grass  of  which  was  already  assuming  the  fresh 
green  hue  of  spring,  he  turned  aside  to  a  well- 
known  sheltered  yet  sunny  nook,  where  the  earli- 
est spring  flowers  were  erer  to  be  found.  He 
glanced  around  a  moment,  a  sweet  perfume  was 
wafted  close  to  him  by  the  quiet  breeze,  and  with 
a  cry  of  delight  the  child  descried,  at  the  root  of  a 
still  leafless  tree,  the  first  wild  violets  of  the 
season. 

"I'm  glad,  so  glad,"  he  said  to  himself;  "I 
wanted  them  so  much  for  him ;  those  which  grow 
here  are  always  so  sweet  and  fresh,  and  who  knows 
if  dear  Master  Willoughby  will  ever  see  another 


CHILDREN   OF  THE   GREAT  KING.          211 

spring?  Least  that's  what  grandmother  says, 
though  I  can't  believe  it,  even  though  I  am  sure 
he's  fit  to  be  an  angel  in  heaven,  and  looks  one, 
too,  all  except  the  wings ;  but  he'll  get  them  soon 
enough,  and  fly  away  from  us.  O  me !  O  me ! 
and  he  so  kind !  I  can't  bear  to  have  him  go." 

The  violets  were  soon  gathered,  the  morning 
dew  still  resting  on  them,  and  Willie  set  off  home- 
ward, from  thence  to  haste  away  to  Willoughby 
House  with  his  offering  of  love. 

The  sun  had  risen  and  slowly  dissipated  the 
mist  from  the  earth.  The  sun  shone  forth  in  all 
his  brightness,  foretelling  a  glorious  spring  day. 
How  various  were  the  feelings  with  which  that 
sun-rising  (like  many  another)  was  witnessed ! 
To  some  it  spoke  of  happiness  and  joy,  dark  days 
passed  away;  spring,  gladness,  and  mirth  come 
again.  To  others  it  spoke  of  yet  another  day  of 
long  weary  suffering  and  toil  to  be  borne ;  and  to 
some  it  spoke  of  suffering  finishing,  of  heavenly 
rest  beginning. 

Thus  it  spoke  to  one  of  the  children  of  the  Great 
King.  Yes,  the  end  was  now  close  at  hand.  Ere 
that  sun  rose  again  Arthur  Willoughby  would  be 
a  dweller  in  the  land  which  needeth  not  its  rays, 
because  of  the  light  which  proceedeth  from  the 


212          CHILDREN   OF  THE   GREAT  KING. 

Lamb  of  God.  Father,  mother,  sister,  cousin  were 
around  him  now,  tears  falling  softly,  very  softly, 
lest  they  should  mar  the  peace  of  the  dying  boy. 

Not  a  shade  of  fear  on  his  brow ;  joy  lighted 
up  the  clear  bright  eye,  bright  even  in  death. 
"  Father,  mother,  meet  me  there,"  he  said ;  "  dear 
Frances,  and  Minnie,  too,  remember,  all  come. 
Jesus  says,  Come.  Ada,  the  Guide  is  holding  me 
fast ;  the  light  shines  so  bright,  it  keeps  away  all 
the  dark.  O  it  is  so  beautiful,  so  very  beauti- 
iful !"  The  child  lay  still  and  quiet ;  then,  "  Open 
the  window,"  he  said,  "  dear  papa ;  I  do  so  love 
to  look  out  at  the  beautiful  budding  trees  and 
glorious  sun." 

Just  then  Mr.  Hole  entered.  "  Arthur,"  he  said, 
"  is  not  this  a  lovely  day  ?  "  "  Yes,"  he  replied, 
"  my  last  on  earth.  Is  it  not  kind  in  the  Great 
King  to  send  such  a  one  ?"  The  clergyman  stooped 
over  the  boy,  saying  softly,  "  Happy  boy ;  so  soon 
to  see  the  King  in  his  beauty,  and  the  land  that  is 
afar  off!" 

Arthur  drew  his  father  and  mother  near  him. 
"  Papa,  mamma,  say  that  you  are  willing  that  I 
should  go ;  that  you  wont  grieve  too  much  for 
me.  Say  it,  do  say  it." 

Ah !  it  was  hard  to  do — the  mother's  stifled  sob 


CHILDREN  OF  THE   GREAT   KING.          213 

told  how  hard;  the  father's  quivering  lips  also. 
But  Mr.  Willoughby  spoke  at  last  the  words, 
"  Thy  will  be  done."  The  mother,  Frances,  and 
Ada,  all  slowly  echoed  them.  The  child's  face 
was  radiant  with  joy  as  he  heard  them,  and  those 
near  heard  him  whisper,  "Come  now,  Lord  Je- 
sus, come  quickly." 

Just  then  a  low  knock  was  heard  at  the  door, 
and  Willie  Barnes  entered,  his  violets  in  his  hand. 
As  he  saw  the  assembled  party  he  drew  back  in 
dismay,  and  would  have  turned  and  run  off;  but 
Mr.  Willoughby  signed  to  him  to  come  in  and 
give  the  flowers.  Arthur  raised  his  eyes  as  he 
entered,  and  faintly  whispered,  "Thank  you;  O 
what  beauties !  Willie,  I'm  going ;  meet  me  in 
the  palace." 

The  boy  stood  amazed.  Was  this  death  ?  He 
had  thought  of  it  as  something  fearful  and  gloomy, 
but  joy  was  written  in  that  dying  face.  "  Sing," 
he  said;  and  with  faltering  voices  they  sang  his 
favorite  song,  "  I  lay  my  sins  on  Jesus,"  finishing 
with  the  words, 

"  I  long  to  be  with  Jesus  amid  the  heavenly  throng, 

To  sing  with  saints  his  praises,  to  learn  the  angels'  song." 

As  it  finished,  Arthur  looked  quickly  up :  "I 
see,  1  see  the  gate  of  the  palace  opening ;  I  come, 


214:         CHILDREN  OF  THE  GREAT  KING. 

I  come ! "  And,  absent  from  the  body,  the  spirit  of 
a  child  of  the  Great  King  had  entered  into  the 
palace,  to  dwell  there  forever. 

Over  the  scene  which  followed  we  will  draw  a 
vail.  Few,  ah,  how  few !  there  are  who  cannot 
draw  from  experience  that  scene,  too  solemn,  too 
sacred  to  be  dwelt  on.  Blessed  be  He  who  by 
his  own  tears  hath  given  to  Christian  mourners 
the  sanction  to  weep,  and  yet  amid  that  weeping 
bids  them  rejoice,  saying,  "  Thy  brother  shall  rise 
again ! " 

The  body  of  the  child  lay,  beautiful  in  death, 
Willie's  violets  in  his  hand;  spring  flowers, 
plucked  by  loving  hands  and  wet  with  tears,  were 
scattered  round  him ;  round  the  fair  pale  forehead 
the  eye  of  faith  could  read  the  words,  "  Of  such  is 
the  kingdom  of  heaven." 

Loved  and  loving  in  his  life,  he  was  not  un- 
mourned  at  his  death.  Sobs,  loud  and  unre- 
strained, broke  from  Claude's  breast  as  he  read 
that  Arthur  was  dead.  What  heeded  he  then 
that  some  scoffing  eyes  witnessed  the  first  out- 
burst of  his  grief?  He  should  see  his  gentle 
cousin  no  more  on  earth.  That  thought  at  first 
banished  all  others ;  then  came  the  remembrance, 
"He  is  with  Jesus  in  the  golden  city."  That 


CHILDREN  OF  THE   GREAT  KING.          215 

calmed  the  grief,  and  let  the  first  ray  of  comfort 
in.  And  as  Colonel  Percy  read,  in  the  quiet  of  his 
own  room,  the  father's  account  of  the  death  of  his 
only  son,  brave  soldier,  strong-minded  man  as  he 
was,  a  tear  fell  on  the  page. 

Who  shall  condemn  him !  who  say  such  a  tear 
was  unmanly  ? 

"  Go,  search  the  foremost  ranks 

In  danger's  dark  career, 
Be  sure  the  hand  most  daring  there 

Has  wiped  away  a  tear." 


216         CHILDREN  OF  THE  GREAT  KING. 


CHAPTER  XXIV. 

"  Easy  indeed  it  were  to  reach 

A  mansion  in  the  courts  above, 
If  swelling  words  and  fluent  speech 

Might  serve  instead  of  faith  and  love. 
But  none  shall  gain  the  blissful  place, 

Or  God's  unclouded  glory  see, 
Who  talks  of  free  and  sovereign  grace, 

Unless  that  grace  has  made  him  free." 

STTMMEB  sunshine  filled  a  tastefully  furnished 
drawing-room  in  a  pretty  villa  residence  not  many 
miles  from  London.  The  windows  of  the  room 
opened  out  on  a  beautifully  laid  out  flower  gar- 
den, gay  with  all  the  flowers  of  the  season,  their 
fragrance  pervading  the  room  as  the  windows 
were  thrown  open  to  admit  the  balmy  air. 

Seated  on  a  low  chair,  woi-k  in  hand,  was  Ada 
Percy.  Five  years  have  elapsed  since  she,  along 
with  her  uncle,  aunt,  and  cousins',  had  knelt  by 
Arthur's  dying  bed.  Those  years  have  changed 
the  girl  into  the  woman;  the  hair  golden  as  of 
yore,  and  the  eye  soft  and  loving.  Girlish  she 
looked  still,  despite  her  twenty  years;  but  her 
character  was  well  formed,  and  her  manners, 


CHILDREN   OF  THE   GREAT  KING.          217 

though  winning,  were  marked  by  the  gentle  dig- 
nity of  the  woman.  For  three  years  she  had  lived 
with  her  father  and  his  widowed  sister,  whose  hus- 
band had  died  in  India,  and  who,  at  her  brother's 
request  when  he  left  the  army,  had  come  to  reside 
with  him,  and  be  a  companion  to  his  young 
daughter. 

Step  by  step  had  Ada  advanced  in  the  knowl- 
ledge  and  practice  of  heavenly  things.  The 
simple  faith  of  her  childhood  was  still  retained ; 
her  Saviour  still  remained  to  her  as  a  friend  and 
guide ;  on  she  was  ever  pressing  toward  the  goal. 
The  trials  and  troubles  of  daily  life  lay  lightly  on 
her,  for  she  carried  them  all  to  her  Saviour,  and 
asked  his  counsel  concerning  them.  The  great 
end  of  life  was  ever  present  to  her,  not  self-grati- 
fication, but  the  glorifying  of  her  God  in  all  things. 
She  was  a  very  sunbeam  in  her  home ;  and  many 
a  time,  as  Colonel  Percy  watched  her  gentle,  lov- 
ing ways,  the  image  of  her  mother  rose  before 
him,  and  he  owned  that  his  greatest  ambition  for 
his  daughter  was  fulfilled  in  her  resemblance,  not 
only  in  face,  but  in  mind  also,  to  her  he  had  so 
fondly  loved. 

In  her  own  neighborhood  Ada  was  a  universal 

favorite ;    "  so  obliging,  so  courteous,"  said  her 

14 


218          CHILDREN   OF  THE   GREAT   KING. 

young  companions ;  "  so  staid,  and  with  so  much 
common  sense,"  said  the  elder  ladies ;  while  the  ver- 
dict of  the  gentlemen  part  of  the  community  was, 
"  No  nonsense  about  her,  so  unaffected,  and  yet  so 
blithe  and  pleasant."  And  let  any  stranger  visit 
the  cottages  near  her  residence,  and  they  would 
have  found  the  favorite  theme  was  Miss  Percy : 
"So  kind  she  is,  so  good  too — reads  the  Bible 
most  as  well  as  the  parson ;  and  as  for  tending  the 
sick — speak  of  that  lady,  Miss  Nightingale,  don't 
believe  she's  half  so  good  at  it  as  Miss  Percy." 

Yet  Ada  had  her  daily  struggles  between  right 
and  wrong,  between  duty  and  inclination,  as  we 
all  have;  only  every  day  she  was  growing  in 
grace,  every  day  the  desire  for  conformity  to  the 
image  of  Christ  was  increasing,  and,  a  child  of  the 
Great  King,  she  was  ever  seeking  that  in  her,  and 
by  her,  his  name  should  be  magnified.  She  did 
not  hide  the  light  given  her  from  above  under 
a  bushel,  but  let  it  shine  brightly  around,  so  lead- 
ing others  to  the  Sun  of  Righteousness,  whose 
light  she  reflected. 

On  the  day  we  write  of,  as  she  sat  alone  in  the 
drawing-room,  her  father  came  in  with  an  open 
letter  in  his  hand.  She  rose  quickly  up.  "  From 
Claude,  papa?" 


CHILDREN   OF  THE   GREAT   KING.          219 

"  No,  but  from  his  commanding  officer,"  replied 
Colonel  Percy.  "  Read  it ;  it  is  a  letter  which 
father  or  sister  may  well  be  proud  of.  The  writer 
is  my  old  friend  Stewart." 

Ada  took  the  letter  eagerly  and  read.  The 
writer  was  great  in  the  praise  of  Claude,  who 
had  now  been  for  three  years  in  the  regiment  of 
which  Stewart  was  colonel,  and  which  was  sta- 
tioned in  India.  He  said : 

"  I  have  Observed  him  closely  during  that  time, 
and  have  been  much  pleased  with  him  in  all 
things.  His  bravery  as  a  soldier  was  shown  in  the 
bold  way  he  acted,  when  he  first  joined,  in  an  unex- 
pected attack  made  by  some  of  the  hill  tribes.  He 
has  the  right  stuff  for  a  soldier  in  him ;  and,  Percy, 
what  I  admire  above  all  things  in  his  character  is 
his  moral  courage.  No  lukewarm  servant  is  he  of 
the  Great  Master ;  no,  bold  and  uncompromising 
he  stands  out,  never  ashamed,  even  amid  much 
ridicule  and  sneering,  to  confess  that  he  is  on  the 
Lord's  side,  a  soldier  of  the  Cross.  Yet  with  most 
of  us  he  is  a  great  favorite ;  his  open,  generous, 
cheerful  nature  attracts  even  those  to  him  who 
cannot  comprehend  his  strong  religious  feelings. 
'  'Pon  my  word,'  said  a  young  officer  in  my  hear- 
ing the  other  day,  "  if  Percy's  a  common  specimen 


220          CHILDREN   OF  THE   GREAT   KING. 

of  a  Christian  man,  I  should  not  care  supposing 
there  were  lots  more  of  them,  nor  even  if  I  were 
to  turn  that  sort  of  thing  myself.  Capital  fellow, 
no  doubt  of  that,  though  he  does  sing  psalms.' 
Such  is  the  universal  character  he  has  gained,  and 
I  know  you  will  be  gratified  to  hear  it.  It  is  a 
good  thing  when  Christians,  by  their  consistent 
conduct,  constrain  even  the  enemies  to  godliness 
to  acknowledge  that  there  is  indeed  a  beauty  in 
holiness." 

Ada's  eyes  were  filled  with  tears  of  joy  as  she 
laid  down  the  letter.  "  O,  papa,  I  am  so  glad ; 
not  that  I  doubted  it,  but  it  is  so  pleasant  to  hear 
it  from  such  a  man  as  Colonel  Stewart.  Claude 
is  indeed  a  brother  to  be  proud  of." 

"  Well,  Ada,"  said  Colonel  Percy,  "  let  us  thank 
God  for  it.  By  his  grace  he,  as  well  as  ourselves, 
stands  fast.  Now  is  our  time  of  training  and  prep- 
aration for  eternity ;  now  is  the  time  in  which  we 
can  bear  witness  for  our  Lord.  Our  King  is  absent 
for  a  while,  waiting  till  the  kingdoms  of  this  world 
shall  have  become  his  also ;  gone  away  but  to 
return  again,  leaving  his  children  to  testify  of  him 
boldly  to  all  around,  till  he  shall  see  of  the  travail 
of  his  soul,  and  return  in  glory,  bringing  his  saints 
with  him.  We  must  send  this  letter  to  Willoughby 


CHILDREN  OF  THE   GREAT   KING.          221 

House;  they  will  like  to  read  it.  Dear  Arthur, 
how  he  loved  Claude  ! " 

"Yes,  papa,"  said  Ada,  "and  I  believe  the  re- 
membrance of  Arthur,  and  his  full  confiding  faith, 
has  helped  Cfoude  in  many  a  difficulty.  He  told 
me  so  once,  and  how  he  often  thought  of  Arthur's 
motto,  '  God,  whose  I  am,  and  whom  I  serve.' 
Dear  Arthur,  he  has  not  lived  in  vain." 

One  glance  at  Willoughby  House  ere  our  story 
ends.  Changes  are  there,  but  pleasant  ones.  Mr. 
and  Mrs.  Willoughby  are  united  in  a  bond  stronger 
now  than  ever;  for  to  the  love  which  had  ever 
existed  there  is  now  added  the  everlasting  bond 
of  union  in  Jesus,  which  not  even  death  can  sever. 
That  bond  was  drawn,  in  its  closest  tie,  over  the 
grave  of  their  first-born  son.  Minnie,  now  a  merry 
child  of  some  ten  years,  is  the  youngest  no  longer. 
A  bright  little  rosy  boy  of  four  years,  dear  little 
Gerald,  is  to  be  seen  following  his  father  about 
everywhere,  bold  and  independent,  as  Arthur  had 
never  been.  With  deep  gratitude  his  parents  had 
received  him  as  a  gift  from  God,  sent  to  fill  up 
Arthur's  vacant  place.  "  Perhaps,"  said  his  father, 
"  another  plant  to  rear  for  the  heavenly  garden : 
shall  we  call  him  Arthur?"  They  consulted,  but 
by  mutual  agreement  they  said  no;  that  name 


222          CHILDREN   OF  THE   GREAT   KING. 

could  not  now  be  associated  with  the  living  to 
them ;  it  was  sacred  to  the  dead,  or  rather  to  the 
redeemed  one,  now  in  glory — in  the  palace  of  the 
Great  King. 

And  Frances,  what  of  her  ?  Ask  strangers,  and 
they  might  still  tell  you  that  she  had  grown  up  a 
bold  woman,  too  bold  by  far,  holding  strong 
opinions  on  all  subjects,  and  scrupling  not  to 
express  them  fully ;  scarcely  feminine,  it  was  said. 
But  see  •  her,  if  her  eye  rested  on  a  boy  of  about 
nine  years  of  age,  more  especially  if  he  had  large 
soft  blue  eyes;  the  boldness  disappeared,  and  a 
gentle  softness  took  its  place,  as,  with  a  sweet 
smile,  she  would  allure  the  child  to  her  side,  and 
ere  long  gain  his  confidence  and  love.  Alone  with 
such,  be  they  children  of  rich  or  poor,  she  would 
tell  them  of  a  dear  boy  she  had  loved  so  well,  whose 
greatest  wish  had  ever  been  to  do  the  will  of  the 
Great  King,  and  who  was  now  with  him  above. 

Yes,  Frances  "VVilloughby  was  indeed  become  a 
child  of  the  Great  King,  not  a  Mary,  loving  to  sit 
at  the  Saviour's  feet,  so  much  as  a  Martha,  active 
and  bustling :  helpful,  especially  as  a  leading  hand 
in  the  working  society  of  the  parish,  and  also  in 
many  ways  where  a  clear  head  and  good  judgment 
were  required.  Not  hers,  Ada's  gentle,  loving 


CHILDREN   OF   THE   GREAT   KING.          223 

ways ;  not  hers,  the  voice  to  soothe  the  dying  bed ; 
but  let  us  not  forget  that  there  are  diversities  of 
gifts,  but  the  same  Spirit.  The  body  is  not  one 
member,  but  many :  the  eye  cannot  say  unto  the 
hand,  "  I  have  no  need  of  thee ;"  nor  the  head  to 
the  feet,  "  I  have  no  need  of  you."  Various  are 
the  characters,  different  the  gifts  and  attainments, 
of  the  children  of  the  Great  King;  but  in  one 
thing  they  are  all  alike.  Love  to  Jesus  dwells  in 
their  hearts,  and  in  some  degree  his  image  is 
reflected  in  every  face.  In  the  world,  they  are 
not  of  the  world ;  called  from  darkness  to  light, 
they  show  forth  the  praises  of  Him  who  has  so 
called  them. 

Dear  readers,  have  you  joined  this  heavenly 
band?  They  and  they  only  are  the  happy  ones. 
Safe  for  time  and  for  eternity,  their  work  and 
delight  is  to  do  the  will  of  the  Great  King.  That 
little  band  may  seem  poor  and  lowly,  even  de- 
spised now ;  but  they  are  all  glorious  within ;  and 
ere  long,  clothed  in  the  snow-white  linen  of  Jesus's 
righteousness,  they  shall  enter  the  King's  palace, 
and  behold  him  in  his  beauty,  and  know  even  as 
they  are  known. 

Even  as  when  he  tarried  on  earth,  the  Son  of 
the  King  is  this  day  saying,  "  Come."  Turn  not 


224          CHILDREN  OF  THE   GREAT  KING. 

away  from  that  invitation,  but,  just  as  you  are,  go 
and  join  the  band,  saying,  "Here  am  I,  Lord; 
take  me,  even  me." 

"  And  then,  if  any  one  should  say, 
What's  the  news?  what's  the  news? 

O  tell  them  you've  begun  to  pray ; 
That's  the  news,  that's  the  news : 

That  you  have  joined  the  conquering  band, 

And  now  with  joy,  at  God's  command, 

Are  marching  to  the  better  land ; 
That's  the  news,  that's  the  news." 


THE    END. 


ROOKS  PUBLISHED  BI  CARLTCN  &  PORTER, 

2OO  Mulberry-street,  \ew  York. 


Moral  and  Eeligious  Quotations 

From  the  Poets.  Topically  Arranged.  Comprising 
choice  Selections  from  six  hundred  Authors.  Com 
piled  by  Rev.  WILLIAM  RIOB,  A.M.  8vo. 


We  have  seen  many  dictionaries  of  quotations,  but  this  surpasses  them  all 
to  extent  and  system.  Tne  subjects  are  those  that  come  before  the  preacher's 
mind,  and  he  will  open  this  book  as  he  is  preparing  a  sermon,  and  find  happy 
lines  to  adorn  and  enrich  his  discourse,  and  astonish  his  hearers  by  his  famil- 
iarity with  the  poets!  It  will  also  lead  him  to  the  study  of  poetry,  an.l 
Introduce  him  to  authors  whose  acquaintance  he  would  never  have  culti- 
vated, but  for  these  brief  and  sententious  extracts  from  their  works.  MO?J 
than  four  thousand  quotations  are  here  made. — New  York  Observer. 

Pronouncing  Bible, 

Large  8vo. 

"We  have  lately  issued  the  best  Bible  in  print,  a  PRONOUNCING  BIBI.E 
having  these  advantages :  L,  The  proper  names  are  divided  and  accented,  BO 
that  a  child  can  pronounce  them  correctly.  2.  Each  book  has  a  short  in- 
troduction, showing  just  what  every  reader  ought  to  know  about  it  8.  It 
has  a  much  improved  class  of  references.  4.  It  COL  tains  a  map  of  Old  Ca- 
naan and  its  surroundings,  and  one  of  Palestine,  according  to  the  latest  dis- 
coveries. 

The  method  is  more  simple  and  easy  than  any  otLer  we  have  seen.  The 
pronunciation  marks  are  very  judiciously  confined  to  the  proper  names, 
having  the  remainder  of  the  text  unencumbered.  The  multitudes  of  Bibi* 
readers  who  stumble  at  the  hard  names  of  people  and  places  may  find  a 
ray  satisfactory  relief  by  using  this  edition.  For  family  worship,  or  privaU 
Jsvotional  reading,  this  edition  has  strong  recommendations. — Presbyterian 

In  this  Bible  the  proper  names  are  divided  into  syllables  and  accented,  si 
»aa*.  it  is  hardly  possible  to  mispronounce  them.  The  "Introductions"  as 
brief,  but  contain  a  large  amount  of  useful  and  necessary  information.  Tha 
"references,"  as  far  as  we  have  had  time  to  test  them,  are  decidedly  tb« 
most  accurate  we  hive  met  with.  It  is  one  of  the  most  beautiful  and  com- 
plete Bible*  ui  the  world,  and  it  will  be  an  acquisition  to  the  atady  th« 
hmlly ,  the  Bible  class  and  the  pulpit— JteangtUcal 


This  book  is  DUE  on  the  last 
date  stamped  below 


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